


Always Family

by 1ShefaniFan, Gwenfanatic



Series: As Fate Would Have it [3]
Category: Shefani
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-23
Updated: 2017-09-02
Packaged: 2018-11-18 02:51:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 19
Words: 55,548
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11282253
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/1ShefaniFan/pseuds/1ShefaniFan, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gwenfanatic/pseuds/Gwenfanatic
Summary: The final part of this series....





	1. Let Me In

Gwen collapses on the floor inside their room. They had just made up and then this. Was the universe trying to tear them apart because it sure feels like it. Gwen hears the knock on the door but she isn't in the place to talk to anyone so she stays where she is on the floor. She hears the door click open but doesn't bother to even look up. 

"Gwen? Honey what happened?" Patti asks sitting down on the edge of the bed in front of Gwen. Once Gwen knows it's her mom she gets up off the floor and crawls into her moms arms. "Shhhh sweetheart. Calm down we will figure it out." She cries so hard there is no way she could talk, so Patti waits holding her daughter till she calms enough to talk.

"Gwen what happened?" 

"I screwed up mom, so bad this time. I don't think he is ever gonna forgive me."

"Baby I can't help until you tell me what's going on."

"Before they removed my tumor and everything, I had them retrieve my eggs and freeze them. I wanted to have the option to kids of my own even if I couldn't carry them myself. From day one with Blake I have told him there is no way for us to have a baby together. They just called to renew the contract I had and to confirm that I added Blake to the authorized personnel list." 

"Gwen why didn't you tell him Gwen?" 

"I don't know. Honestly I thought he would be opposed to it and make me unfreeze them. I wasn't ready for that yet."

"Gwen you have to stop treating him like he's Tony or Gavin. You have a wonderful man who loves you more than life itself. You have to stop hiding things from him. He isn't gonna bolt at every little thing. Believe in him. Believe in you together."

"He wants kids of his own so bad and I knew that. Yet I told him there was no way possible, and then he finds out this way. I really was gonna tell him just not now we have so much going on. I lost him this time didn't I?" 

"No I don't think so honey. That man loves you and your daughter too much to walk away. I'm not saying he isn't gonna be hurt or upset for a while but you can't just turn love off like that." 

They can hear Lena crying and it getting louder until they hear the knock on the door and see Jen sticking her head in through the crack. 

"Hey Lena is really upset and she wants you." 

Gwen gets up out of her mom's arms and walks to the door to get her little girl. That's the thing about becoming a mom, you and your feelings are not the priority anymore. That little girl trumps all else. As soon as Lena is in her arms nothing else in the world matters her baby is upset and it's her job as mommy to fix that. 

"Mommy." Lena cries tucking her neck into the crook of Gwen's neck. 

"Shhh baby it's ok. Mommy is right here. I'm not going anywhere without you." Gwen reassures while rubbing up and down her back.

"I want daddy." She says through sniffles

"Daddy went out for a little bit. He will be back." Gwen says wishfully looking at her mom "do you want to lay down on mommy's bed with me and watch tv?" The little girl sat up to look at Gwen shaking her head yes. "Ok baby."  

Gwen and Lena crawl into bed. Lena lays down with her head on Gwen's chest cuddled all up. This action alone helps calm Gwen. Having her baby with her just laying there makes Gwen feel like she is in a capsule. Here she is blocked off from all the troubles that life brings and she is able to stop and take comfort in the unconditional love from her daughter. 

                                            ...................................................  
After lunch Gwen is still held up in her room. She came down long enough to fix a lunch for Lena and carried it back up to her room. There has been no sign of Blake since he slammed the door shut this morning. It was quickly approaching dinner and Patti decided that she should go look for Blake and check on him. 

Gwen had told her that the last time they fought Blake had gone to the barn and went for a ride on his horse.  Patti figured that the barn was the best place to check first.  As she approached the barn she could see the door slightly open.  She let herself inside calling for Blake as she entered to give him a sort of heads up that she was there "Blake...Blake son...you in here?"

As she walked in further she saw her the silhouette of her son-in-law in one of the stalls whispering.  "Was he talking to himself" she wondered?  She took a few more steps closing the distance and she realized that he in fact was not talking to himself, he was talking to the horse.

"Dammit Storm why can't she see I'm not them...all I want is to make her happy but apparently I am not good enough" Blake says to the horse through a steady stream of tears.  

"Blake honey...that's not true.  You are the best thing that has ever happened to my daughter" Patti says startling Blake from his confessions.

"Patti I am so sorry...I am so sorry I can't make her happy.  I tried!  Really I did!" 

Patti looks around and sees a bench just outside the stall.  She takes Blake by the elbow and leads him to the bench to sit down.  "Blake talk to me son...tell me what you're thinking."

Blake clears the tears from his face with the sleeve of his flannel "I don't know what to think Patti.  I am mad, disappointed, and confused all at the same time.  I am mad she didn't tell me about this, disappointed that she felt she couldn't trust me with the information, and confused because I literally don't understand what I have ever done to her to make her feel she can't trust me enough to share this with me!"

"I completely understand Blake.  Let me give you a little insight as to Gwen's insecurities.  She has never been loved the way she loves; with her entire being; until you came along.  Tony was young, immature and never really put her first or even second for that matter.  Gavin, well from what I hear you have met him first hand.  You saw what he is like.  If he wasn't making her feel awful about herself it was like he wasn't doing what he thought was his job.  He made it his goal to make her feel like nothing so that she had to rely on him.  He convinced her that we were against her and it worked."

Blake looked at his mother-in-law "I get that but that doesn't give her the right to take it out on me.  I am not them Patti.  I would never do that to her.  Hell I was willing to postpone recording my first album to stay with her because she is said she was scared I would choose music over her.  I could never do that.  From the moment I laid eyes on her I knew I was done.  She was the one for me.  I promised myself that I would never stop making her happy, never stop providing a good life for her.  But I can't do that if she won't completely let me in and trust me."

Patti took Blake's hand in hers and covered it with her other handing patting it lightly "You are right Blake and you have every right to feel what you are feeling.  She is absolutely petrified that you are going to leave her now.  She thinks that she has lost you for good and for what it's worth I already let her know that she should have been upfront with you about this from the beginning.  Anyone who sees you two can see that you both love each other more than life itself; that you would both sacrifice anything for the other's safety and happiness.  However, you two have had a lot thrown at you in the first six months of your marriage.  Most people are so tied up in each other this early on in a marriage it is like the outside world doesn't exist but for you and Gwen, honey, the outside world crashed your honeymoon literally.  You both need to take time to sit down, talk with each other, be open and honest about everything...alone...by yourselves. That being said...Dennis and I are going to watch Lena for y'all while you take some time to work through this okay.  Go to her Blake and don't let her go until you figure this out because son...you are the one and only person I know that can save my daughter from her own self-doubts.  No other man, not even her dad can do that."

Blake pulls Patti in for a hug "I know I have never asked you this Patti but can I call you mom?" he says smiling down at his mother-in-law.

"Of course...I would be honored" she replies

"Well good, thank you mom...and thank you for coming to find me.  I don't like people to see me break down but you seemed to know exactly what to say.  If you don't mind I am going to go find my wife and work this out."

Patti smiles up at her son-in-law "you'll find her with your daughter in your room.  She hasn't left the bed since you left the house.  I will come with you and get Lena so we can watch a movie with the others to give you both some privacy.  Don't let her off easy Blake...she needs to hear what you have to say okay?  Be honest and blunt with her okay?  Do that and everything will work itself out in due time" she says as they make their way out of the barn.  
                                                  ...................................................  
Blake sat down on the foot of the bed, while Gwen pushed herself up against the headboard.

"Why Gwen? Why would you hide this from me? Why don't you trust me? I just want to understand why you felt like you couldn't tell me something like this." 

Gwen looks at her feet trying remain composed. "Blake I'm sorry. When I had them retrieve my eggs I was alone and scared. Then you came along and excepted all of my flaws. I knew you wanted kids but we really haven't been together that long and if Lena hadn't fallen in our laps we wouldn't have gotten a baby so soon. I didn't even know if I was fully comfortable with the idea of another woman giving birth to my biological child." 

"Why did you add me to the list then?" 

"I wanted you to have the option if I relapsed and something happened to me. I wanted you to be able to have a part of me if you wanted to." At this point Blake moves next to Gwen pulling her into his lap. They sit there like that for a few minutes. 

"Gwen I don't want you to feel like you have to hide things from me. If we talk about something like this and we decide it's not what we want then it's done. However,  you need to give me a chance to have those discussions. I'm not gonna lie to you if I hadn't been so hurt that you kept this from, I would have been excited. I want us to have at least one child that is biologically ours. Lena is our daughter and will be just as much our daughter as a baby that's biologically ours, but I want to look up from the news paper and see a blonde curly haired and blue eyed baby and be able to think damn she or he looks just like their mama." 

"I know babe. It's just there is a lot to think about. I'm scared whoever we use as a surrogate won't want to give us the baby once it's born. I sure can't bear to have a biological child out there and not be raising it. And then there is the whole breastfeeding deal. If we have a newborn I want it to be fed breast milk not formula. And clearly I won't be able to do that either. Lastly there is a whole bonding process through pregnancy, birth, and even during breastfeeding. What if the baby doesn't bond with me. I don't know I'm just scared." 

"Let me ask you this. Do you want a baby that is biologically ours, all worries aside?" 

"Yeah I really do. It kills me that I'm so screwed up I can't even give you one on my own." A tear slips out of her eye and runs down her cheek. Blake reaches up and wipes it off. 

"Gwen don't you dare call yourself screwed up. You are absolutely perfect. So our journey to get our kids is unconventional, who cares. I don't. We have a beautiful little girl to show for it and I wouldn't change a thing about how we got her." 

"Blake I love you" Gwen says looking down at her hands still thinking about how she let him down. He doesn't let her feel down long as his lifts her chin with his finger. 

"I love you too Gwen so much more than I can ever express to you. I need you to talk to me though. I need you to let me in. I'm not them. I will never hurt you the way they hurt you. I'm here for you. I. Love. You. I wouldn't want to change a single thing about you."

"I know. We promised communication and I failed that. I promise I'm not gonna fail at that anymore. If I were to lose you Blake, it would kill me. Flat out kill me."  
He leans in planting a kiss on her lips and wiping her tear.

"We are ok. I'm not going anywhere. I promise. So about the baby, let's make an appointment and talk to someone. Ask them our questions. Maybe they will give us answers to our fears." 

"Are you sure?" 

"I'm sure I want this and you want this so why not? And just because we go and ask questions doesn't mean we have to say we are doing it. We are just getting our facts together before deciding."

"Ok yes. Let's do it." 

Gwen and Blake walk back into the living room. Gwen is tucked under Blake's arm her head resting against his chest. The minute Lena's eyes fall on her parents, she runs to them yelling "Mommy mommy mommy!" reaching her hands up to Gwen signaling she wanted to be held. Gwen reaches down and picking her up hugging her to her chest placing kisses all over her face causing her giggle uncontrollably. 

"I love you baby girl." Gwen tells her

"Love you mommy." She then looked at Blake. "Love you daddy." 

"I love you too baby girl" Blake says leaning in kissing his little girl. 

"Mommy love daddy?"  

"Yeah baby mommy loves daddy." 

"Daddy love mommy?" 

"Absolutely baby; daddy love mommy a lot." 

"Daddy kiss mommy." They all bust out laughing but Blake leans in place a deep loving kiss on Gwen's lips.


	2. Family Fun

Blake had made arrangements with the label to get a hotel that could accommodate his wife and daughter.  They had made sure they had a suite at the Gaylord Opryland Hotel it had a bedroom and living area so Gwen could entertain Lena while working on sketches.  Each morning Blake was up early to get to the studios at Rare Records by 7AM.  He had written some songs on his own and the execs were excited see exactly what Blake was capable of.  The first day there he was so nervous.  Gwen had woken up early when she heard him pacing in front of the bed.  He had told her how he felt his music wasn't good enough and he didn't think a label would want an artist who wasn't a talented writer.  It took a minute but she was able to talk him down and remind him of just how talented she thought he was.  She encouraged him to go into that first session and lay it on the line; wow them with his lyrics and he had done just that.  The execs were impressed.  Now here he was after 5 days of recording almost 25 songs; his and others from songwriters in Nashville; being told he could take tomorrow off.  They were going to take a listen to everything he had cut and see which ones they felt would be the most marketable to country music radio. 

Blake put the key card in the door and was almost knocked over by his daughter running into his legs "Daddy, daddy" Lena yelled as she wrapped her arms around her daddy's big, tall legs.  He didn't notice Gwen in the living area at first "Mommy, mommy yook yook" Lena called out to Gwen.  She came into Blake's line of sight moments later from the balcony overlooking the water feature in the hotel.  She had been sitting out there reading Lena a book, taking a break from sketching.  "Who did you find princess" Gwen asks her daughter smiling at her husband.

"I find Daddy" she says as Blake leans down to pick his daughter up.  He places a kiss on his daughter's temple and makes his way over to his wife.  Wrapping her into a side hug so as to not squish Lena he leans in and gives Gwen a soft kiss.  "Hello gorgeous" he says to his wife.

"Hey there handsome cowboy how was your session today?" she responds returning his kiss.  

"Aww baby it was great.  I've always loved music but being able to do this; make music with some amazing musicians and producers is such a blessing" he says with sincerity.  They walk over to the couch and sit down, Lena crawling all over her dad with excitement.  "I have some news actually" Blake says looking over at Gwen.

"What's going on babe?"

"Well...we have already laid down 25 songs so the label is going to listen to see which ones they want to keep for the record so they gave me tomorrow off to spend with my family" he tells her.

"Really babe" Gwen replies.  "Well I can take a day from sketching.  I have sent a set of sketches to Chuck already for a new children's line I had in mind.  What did you want to do?"

"Well I figured since y'all have been in the hotel most of the time, and don't get me wrong we could be stuck in worse hotels, that we should get out for the day.  There is this amazing restaurant called the Pancake Pantry that is amazing.  Some of country's most famous artists frequent the restaurant.  We will have to get there early because the wait is usually long.  Then I thought we could take this little one to the zoo" he says tickling his daughter and making her laugh until her face his bright red.

"Stop daddy stop" Lena says laughing at her dad.

"Should I stop Mommy?"

"Nah..." Gwen says joining Blake in the tickling of Lena.  Their daughter's laughter resonates through their hotel room.  Blake looks up at Gwen as he finally stops the tickling torture and smiles.  The look on Gwen's face says it all.  She is happy and so is he.  He has his wife and daughter with him in a city that could make him the next big thing in country music.  What man could ask for anything more?

"Come on munchkin" Blake says to Lena "it is getting past your bed time; let's brush your teeth and get you to bed because I am pretty sure mommy already gave you a bath."

"Story daddy...pease!" she begs Blake

"You got it kiddo" Blake says as he reaches for one of his favorite's to read to Lena 'Goodnight Moon'.  He reads the story to his daughter and before he knows it she is sound asleep on the sleeper sofa Gwen had pulled out for her.  He tucks her in and kisses her forehead before heading to the bathroom in their room.  It has been a long week and all he wants to do is go to bed and cuddle with his wife.  He tells Gwen he is going to shower and that he be right in for bed.  She responds in kind and goes back to sketching more clothing line ideas from their bed.  Blake comes out 15 minutes later pajama pants and a t-shirt on and sees his wife sitting up drawing in her sketch book with her glasses on.  He will never get over how beautiful she is.  He climbs into bed beside her, kissing her temple.  Gwen sets her sketch book and pencil on the night stand and turns the light off.  She turns to Blake and snuggles into his side laying her head on his chest.

"Thank you" Blake says

"Thank you for what babe?" Gwen replies

"Thank you for coming with me, for supporting me and my dream.  Having you and Lena here has meant the world to me.  I know you can't come with me to the studio all the time but just knowing you are with me makes it easier.  You have inspired me since the day I met you and you continue to do so...so just...thank you Gwen...thank you for loving me" Blake says conveying his emotions through his ocean blue eyes.

"Babe...you make it easy.  You have stood by me through the darkest times in my life.  You never waver, your love is unconditional...I am the one that should thank you."

"Let's just call it even Sunshine" he says as he leans in for a kiss "now let's get some rest...we have a big day ahead of us with a little girl who will be wired for sound once she really figures out where we are going" Blake says pulling Gwen in tighter as they drift off to sleep.  
                                                 ..............................................  
As they leave the hotel that morning Blake is being interrogated by his daughter "Daddy we go to zoo" Lena asks

"Yes princess we are going to a zoo but not yet...we have to eat breakfast first.  You need energy to get you through the day" he says looking at his daughter as the driver makes his way through Nashville traffic.  As they approach the Pancake Pantry they see the line is winding around the restaurant.  Blake had heard of the restaurant from some of the studio musicians and Mr. Richardson at the label.  He told them all he was going to try to take his family today but he wasn't sure Lena could wait that long for food.  They got out of the vehicle and he had Gwen wait in line while he went to see how long it would be for a table.

"Mornin' Sir...what can I do for ya?" the hostess asked

"Mornin' ma'am...I would like a table for 3...about how long will the wait be?"

"What's the name sir?" she asked

"It's Blake...Blake Shelton" he says

Just as she is about to tell him how long the wait will be Blake hears "Blake my man over here!"  He turns to see Mr. Richardson sitting at a table with a lady who appears to be his wife and a girl who seems to be in her teens.  Blake waves and Mr. Richardson makes his way over "Susie darlin' this here is Blake Shelton...he's the next big country star...mark my words" he says to the hostess.

"Wow...it is a pleasure Mr. Shelton.  Umm the wait is about an hour and a half sir" she says 

"Umm okay we can make it work...thank you ma'am" he replies.  He starts to say goodbye to Mr. Richardson when the man puts his hand on Blake's shoulder...

"Susie....how about you just push that little table that is empty up to mine and bring two extra chairs...Mr. Shelton and his family can just join us...we just sat down and haven't even ordered yet!"

"Oh no Mr. Richardson sir..." Blake starts to respond 

"Blake I told ya to call me Jake"

"Yes sir...I mean Jake" Blake replies "umm I appreciate the offer but my wife and I don't wish to intrude on your family time...plus our daughter is almost 3; she can get antsy"

"Nonsense Blake...you come eat with us..I would love to meet this wife of yours you can't stop talking about and I would love for you to meet my family."

"Uh okay...let me go get them" he replies "Miss Susie...thank you for your help" Blake says as he goes to get his wife and daughter.

The two families get acquainted over some of the best pancakes Gwen as ever had in her life.  Lena is enjoying her food so much she hasn't made a sound since they set the chocolate chip pancakes in front her.  About an hour later their plates are cleared and Blake takes his wallet out to pay their bill.  Mr. Richardson reaches his hand out and tell Blake he's got it covered.  Blake tells him it is fine; he'll pay for his portion but his label exec hears nothing of it and tells the waitress to put it all on his card.  Gwen and Blake thank Jake and say their goodbyes as they head out to the car.  They climb in and tell the driver they need to go to the zoo.  Blake looks to Gwen and Lena and asks "how did my girls like their breakfast?"

"Oh my god babe that was amazing....soooo good" Gwen exclaims

"Did you like your pancakes princess" he asks Lena

"Yummy daddy...yummy!"  
                                                ..............................................  
As they pay the entrance fee for the zoo they decide to head towards the first exhibit.  They see red pandas, giraffes, tigers, bears, and even snakes (which Gwen and Lena are not too fond of).  Lena however wants to see monkeys.

"Monkey, Monkey" she says to Blake who is now carrying her on his shoulders.  Blake makes his way over to the spider monkey exhibit and Lena starts squirming.

"Down daddy down...I see monkey!"

Blake lets her down gently from his shoulders and moves them closer to the enclosure.  They are lucky because the monkeys are being very playful today.  Lena was making faces at the monkeys laughing as they made faces back at her.  "Yook Daddy...monkey face" she said has she made a monkey face at Blake.  Gwen was off to the side taking pictures of her daughter and her husband.  Their little girl had him wrapped around her little finger.  Suddenly Gwen let out a laugh when Blake made a face at Lena.

"You two are a riot.  I am not sure what is more entertaining...the monkeys or you guys" she said walking back over next to Blake and Lena.  "How about we head over to the kangaroo area?  The brochure says we can pet the kangaroos!"

"What do you say munchkin...want to see kangaroos?"

"Kanaroos Daddy...Kanarooss Mommy!" Lena exclaimed.

The family made their way to the kangaroo encounter where Lena would be able to pet the animals.  At first she was timid and didn't go near them but then she saw the baby kangaroo.

"Lena baby look at the baby kangaroo...you want to pet the baby?"

Lena let go of Blake's hand and looked to Gwen who was squatting down next to her daughter "baby kanaroo mommy...I want to pet" she said.

Gwen took her hand and showed her how to gently pet the animal so as to not startle it.  Now it was Blake's turn to take pictures.  He couldn't keep the smile off of his face as he did so.  He was blessed with his amazing wife and a beautiful daughter.  As they explored the rest of the zoo Lena started fading fast.  She was exhausted and was getting cranky.  Gwen looked at Blake and asked "think we should head out; maybe get some dinner to take back to the hotel?"

Blake looked at his wife "Yeah sunshine we can do that.  First, let me take her, she is probably getting heavy" he said as he reached for Lena and situated her on his hip.  Lena tucked her head into her dad's neck and they continued toward the exit.  "Okay now, how about we just go to the hotel and get some room service baby?  That way we can kind of keep this little one contained and not bother anyone if she is still a bit cranky."

"Yeah babe that sounds good...we can just order when we get to the room.  They have been fast any time I have ordered lunch for us."

As the driver took them back to the hotel Lena stayed asleep in between her parents.  Blake reached his hand over his daughter's head and placed it on his wife's shoulder. "Did you have a good time today darlin'?" he asked

"Aww Blakey...we had a great time.  I had so much fun seeing Lena experience all of the animals for the first time.  She really seemed to enjoy it.  When we get back I will show you all of the pictures I got of you two.  She had you all over that zoo today." she said smiling over at her husband.

"I'm glad Sunshine.  I know it can't have been easy being in the hotel most of the time that I have been recording.  I just wanted to make sure you had some fun too.  Thank you for spending the day with me." Blake said as Gwen reached her hand over to Lena to place it on Blake's knee.  He took her hand and kissed her knuckles "I love you Gwen!"

"I love you too babe" she replied

It had been a long day for the family.  Breakfast out, with the head of the label no less; a day of exploring the zoo, and dinner at the hotel with a quick dip in the pool to finish off the night.  They were all exhausted.  As Blake and Gwen put their daughter to sleep and kissed her goodnight Gwen looked at her husband and felt the urge to thank him...

"Thank you Cowboy"

"For what baby?"

"For this...our daughter, our life...just thank you!  I am the happiest I have ever been.  I have an amazing, talented husband who is about to take the country music world by storm, a beautiful little girl, a successful career, and good health for all of us.  I wouldn't be here without you...you saved me and every day all I can do is thank God that I found you!" Gwen leans into her husband's side, places her hand on his chest and tip toes up to meet his lips to hers.  She kisses his slowly, gently, yet passionately conveying her love and appreciation in that one kiss.

"Baby it is you that saved me.  I am truly blessed.  I love you baby...ALWAYS!" Blake replies stealing another kiss.

"I love you too babe...ALWAYS!"


	3. Finding Home

Blake and Gwen made it back to L.A. safely after their time in Nashville. They had made a quick stop in Tishomingo to say goodbye to Blake's family and get some of the essential items they needed for their stay in L.A. for Lena. The flight back to L.A. had been uneventful thankfully. Lena was getting the hang of traveling by plane now. She thought it was fun. They got settled in the rental house the night they arrived and realized something...

"Um Gwen darlin'?"

"Yeah babe" 

"I just realized something....we don't have a bedroom here for Lena. Not unless we take the stuff out of the studio Chuck set up for you" Blake said to his wife.

"Well Chuck gave me a few days off work to get settled back in, so how about we call the real estate agent up that help you find this and we go house hunting?" she asks

"That's a great idea...I will call her in the morning. For now let's just get some rest. It has been a long couple of weeks for us" Blake replies leaning into his wife to place a soft kiss on her lips.  
......................................  
When Gwen woke the next morning she found it was just she and Lena tucked into the bed, her daughter sprawled out like a starfish. She slowly extracted herself and went to the bathroom to shower and get dressed. Once finished she checked to see that Lena was still asleep so she headed downstairs in search of Blake. As she approached the kitchen she could smell breakfast cooking, pancakes she thought. She turned the corner into the kitchen and saw Blake cooking breakfast and talking on the phone to whom she suspected was his real estate agent.

"We will be looking for a house, preferably on or at least near the beach because my wife loves the water. It will need at least 4 bedrooms, possibly an office, and 3 baths please. Yes, we can be there. 12 o'clock sounds great. Thank you so much ma'am. We look forward to working with you again." Blake says before hanging up the phone.

He turns to place the last chocolate chip pancake on the platter and without looking up says "good morning beautiful...you sleep okay?"

"How did you know I was in here? I didn't make a sound and you were on the phone and cooking the whole time" Gwen said making her way to her husband and tip toeing up to get her morning kiss.

"Mmmmm...thank you for that...and to answer your question I can always sense when you're in the room baby. You make my stomach do flips...like butterflies are in there."

"Aww Blakey...that is so sweet. I am going to go get Lena and bring her down for breakfast so we can be ready to leave on time."

When Gwen returns Lena reaches for her dad "Daddy Daddy....morning Daddy....I eat pancake!" she said to Blake

"Yes baby...daddy made you chocolate chip pancakes and scrambled eggs" he said kissing his daughter's forehead. He took Lena and placed her in her booster seat at the table. The family sat in a content state as they ate breakfast together, Blake filling Gwen in on their appointment at noon and Lena devouring her breakfast. When they were finished Gwen took Lena back upstairs to get her ready to go house hunting. She needed to stop by the office to drop some sketches off first so they left early so as to not get stuck in the L.A. traffic...something neither of them missed to be honest.

................,.........................  
When they arrived at the first house a couple of hours later Gwen was excited to begin the search. Blake was fortunate to get a lucrative deal with Rare Records and Gwen made great money at the design firm but they didn't want to stretch themselves too thin because as Blake had said...one record on the charts will not sustain them. He needs to make sure he can keep selling records and start touring as a headliner. They would look for properties they knew they could manage the payments on without difficulty. 

The first house was gorgeous but a bit too modern for them. Never mind the $29 million dollar price tag. Blake almost choked on the bottled water he was drinking as they toured the house when the agent told them the price. 

"Shit for that price this damn house better clean itself!" Blake had said sarcastically to the agent. Thankfully she had laughed and said "you are not the first one to have that reaction considering this isn't considered beach front." As they continued their search they would see homes set more in the mountains, one of which Gwen really liked as it was a bit more secluded; a house on the beach with only 4 bedrooms that could work, and even some a few miles from the beach. None of them immediately jumped out to the couple as to the house they really wanted. Not until the last house they saw.

As they drove up to the gate Gwen could smell the nearby ocean. "Blake, babe, I have a good feeling about this one" she said squeezing his hand.

The house was stunning. Mediterranean style, with a three car garage. They entered through nice open archway to the front door and Gwen gasped as she entered. Blake knew at that moment they wouldn't be needing to look any further. The house was exactly what she wanted. Open kitchen, dining, and living room floor plan. A small guest bath off the living room with an office big enough for her design stuff and Blake's music. There were two guest bedrooms downstairs not far from the bathroom and three upstairs. The master bedroom had a gorgeous ensuite with an old fashion soaking claw tub, walk in shower with multiple shower heads and shower seat built in, double vanity and huge walk in closet. The room was big enough to have a sitting area and a balcony off the sitting area overlooking the ocean. The two spare rooms were just the right size and each had its own bathroom for Lena and hopefully their new baby that would be joining them in the next year or so. The best part was their was even a pool in the backyard in case they wanted more privacy than the beach would offer. Gwen was sold....all she had to do was convince Blake...or so she thought.

They made their way back downstairs to the agent Gwen leaned into Blake's side "Babe...what do you think?" she asked her husband giving him that look that told him what she wanted.

"Baby as long as you like it I will be happy...my home is where you and our kids are..whether it is on the ranch, here at a beach house, or in a cardboard box" he said laughing.

"Really Blake? I love this place. I think it is perfect for us. It has a bit of a rustic, old world feel but with modern updates. Can we put an offer in please?"

Blake kisses Gwen's temple and looks at the agent... "you heard my wife...let's put an offer in. I will have my label call you with any financial information you will need on my end and Gwen can get hers sent to you from Chuck's assistant,"

"Excellent Blake...I will be in contact with you and Gwen within 48 hours I would assumfe. If you offer close to the market value I think they will take it. It has been on the market for over six months...not exactly a seller's market right now. We will give them a low offer so we can negotiate to a solid price."

Gwen looks at Lena and Blake "whatcha think baby girl...do you like it? You want to live here when we aren't at the ranch?"

"I yike it mommy...I can play in water" she says.

"Well there you have it...both of my girls are happy" Blake says to the agent "let's get this taken care of. We look forward to hearing from you soon" he says shaking the agent's hand and leading Gwen and Lena to their car. It had been a great day. All they could do know is hope and pray that their offer was accepted. Blake had a good feeling about this...everything was falling into place.  
........................................  
"It's really good to have you guys back home." Patti says looking to the new little family 

"I'm glad to be back in L.A. Don't get me wrong, I love Tish a lot. I just missed it here."

"Did you find a house?" Dennis asks

"We found a place we love. It has five bedrooms and a great beach view." Gwen says excitement lacing her response.

"Five bedrooms isn't that a bit much for you guys?" Todd joins

"Well Lena gets her own room, then there is our room, and two guest rooms. We need two guest rooms for when all of Blake's family comes to visit."

"Well that still leaves you with an extra room?" Todd says

Gwen nervously looks at Blake and the minute their eyes lock she can feel the nerves dissipate. They may have gone through a lot between the two of them lately but that doesn't change the fact that they were made for each other. They're soulmates. Gwen snaps out of her head when she hears Blake step in and answer for her. 

"Well we have been mulling over the idea of having a baby." Confusion instantly clouds everyone's faces.

"What Blake means is that we are thinking about having a baby using a surrogate." Gwen snaps out of the fear to back up her husband.

"Gwen darling you just adopted Lena do you really think now is the best time?" Patti asks stunned by the idea of the couple having another baby so soon

"Lena is more than well adjusted at this point. Everyday she is making strides to catch up to other kids her age. We want a biological baby and now that we have decided we both want one, we went ahead and set up an appointment to get all the information about the process and ask our questions."

"Gwen you just got over a serious bout of cancer. You got married and adopted a little girl. Don't you think that's enough for now?" Dennis asks

"Wow ok ummm. First of all we said we are thinking about it so we haven't totally decided. Next if we decide to it's gonna be awhile before we have a baby in our arms. We have to find a surrogate we are comfortable with and all that. I'm kinda blown away with the lack of support here. If Blake and I decide this is what we want and can handle, then that's what we are doing. It's our decision. We just hoped you would be supportive." Gwen lashes back

"Gwen it's not that we don't support you. We just want to make sure you have thought it through." Patti tells them

"Patti we talked for a while about this. We know what we are getting into. Having a baby that is ours, that will look like us, is important to us. We want to do it now while Lena is young. Lena was never going to be our only child and it's likely this baby won't be either. All that we want is for you guys to love on them and spoil them like grandparents are entitled to do." Blake pleads

"Of course we will do that. We love Lena to death and we will love the next baby you have too." Patti says  
.......................................................  
After dinner everyone moved outside to the back porch. Lena and Stella ran straight to the new play set their grandparents had to buy for them because they NEEDED it. They insisted that their granddaughters needed to have something to play on outside. Gwen sits in Blake's lap off to the side of the porch, his arms wrapping around her while they watch their daughter play with her cousin. 

"You ok baby?" Quiet enough that only she could hear.

"Yeah I'm ok cowboy just thinking is all." 

"Thinking about what?" 

"How amazing and yet unfair life is. Its amazing for giving you and our little girl to me. It's not fair because the thing we want the most I can't give us. I feel like I'm inadequate as a woman for not being able to. It's the woman's job to give the family babies and I can't do that. 

"Baby we have talked about this. It's ok that we get our kids in unconventional ways. They are still our babies whether you give birth to them or not. They are ours." 

"I know, we just wouldn't have to catch all that crap, like we did at dinner, if I was actually pregnant."

"Gwen it's you and I that decide whether or not to have another baby. As much as we value everyone else's opinions, they don't make the call. They don't know where we are or what we can handle better than we do."

Gwen's lays her head on his shoulder. She lets out a content sigh. Blake's arms tighten around her because in this moment he has never been happier. He looks out at the play set and sees the smile stretched across his daughters face; it brings him a joy he didn't know existed. In this moment it really hits him hard that he doesn't care if they share DNA, he loves that little girl more than life it's self. After a while Lena comes running over to them and Gwen brings her to sit in their lap. 

"Mommy?" 

"Yeah baby?" 

"I love Sella. She my best friend." 

"Aww baby I'm glad you love her so much." 

"Aunt Gwen!" Stella says pulling Jen behind her.

"What's up Stella?" 

"Aunt Gwen can Lena sleep over?" 

"Hmm I don't know. Lena do you want to sleep with Stella at her house tonight?" Gwen asks her daughter

"Mommy come too?"

"No baby mommy has to stay with daddy, but you can go if you want to." The little girls face clouds as she try's to decide what she wants to do.

"Yeah princess go spend the night with your cousin. You will have so much fun. Daddy used to have sleepovers all the time." Blake chimes in. He may have a more motivation for encouraging his daughter other than helping her grow and showing her how fun. Gwen smirks at Blake telling him she knows exactly what's going through his head. 

"Come on Lena it will be so fun!" Stella pleads

"Mommy I sleep with Stella." Lena decides 

"Ok baby. You girls go play some more while aunt Jen and I work it out." 

"Ok mommy, love you!" They run off again to play.

"I love that our girls are so close." Gwen says watching the two girls playing.

"Me too Stella just loves her. Hey I just wanted to tell you I think it's a great idea for you guys to have a baby. Both of your eyes light up at the thought. So I just wanted to tell you I think you should go for it." Gwen tears up and buries face in Blake's neck.

"Thanks Jen we appreciate it. We really do."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We love to know ur thoughts


	4. Falling into place

"Todd?" 

"Yeah baby? What's up?"

"I can't stop thinking about what Gwen and Blake were talking about tonight. Like, I can tell not being able to have a baby is killing Gwen." Jenn tells him

"Yeah it really sucks. They deserve a kid more than most and yet they can't." Todd reflects.

"Your parents were really hard on them. They have been through a lot I get it, but doesn't that mean they deserve happiness?" 

"Yeah I think they deserve to be happy and have the family they want. At the same time though, I can see where my parents are coming from. I mean Gwen hasn't been in remission all that long. They just got Lena settled and everything."

"Yeah it took them awhile to get her settled. All the issues she had. They said for the first month and a half they had her, if they scolded her for anything she would run and hide. She was terrified they were gonna beat her. Can you imagine all the work they had to do with her to get her to where she is now!" 

"Yeah they had some serious work to do to get her to this point. I was literally shocked she wanted to spend the night here." 

"Yeah I'm glad though, she deserves to know that they aren't going anywhere and she can go have fun at a sleepover. So back to Gwen and Blake going the surrogacy route. It really worries me to be honest. I really want to see them have a baby it just scares me." 

"Yeah like what if the surrogate won't give them the baby?"

"Exactly, that's why I had the thought....." 

"What?"

"I want to offer to be their surrogate." Todd's head snaps to look at his wife who is nervously biting her lip.

"You would do that for them?" 

"Yeah I would." Todd pulls Jenn to his chest planting a deep kiss on her lips. 

"I was thinking that but it wasn't my place to suggest. You're sure you would be ok with giving the baby to them when it's born? I don't want you to do it if it's gonna be to hard on you." 

"It will be hard I won't lie. However I think I can handle it. I mean we would still get to see the baby all the time and I really want this for them." 

"I love you." 

"I love you too."   
.....................................................  
Later that night Jen feels hands on her arm. 

"Mommy" Stella says shaking Jenn lightly. 

Jenn opens her eyes and looks at the clock. It's only 3:30 in the morning. She turns over to look at her daughter. 

"Stella what's going on it's the middle of the night?" 

"Mommy Lena's crying. She wants Aunt Gwen and Uncle Blake." 

Jen gets up and walks back to Stella's room with her. When they get to her room, they find Lena in the middle of the bed tears pouring down her cheeks.

"Lena baby what's the matter?" Jenn asks.

"Mommy. I want mommy and daddy." She says through sobs as she crawls to Jenn, who pulls her in her lap. 

"Baby it's ok you're gonna see them in the morning." Jen tells her trying to calm the little girls fears.

Lena however begins to cry harder. 

"Stella go get mommy's phone and bring it here." Jen tells Stella. "Lena baby do you want to FaceTime mommy?" She nods, tears still streaming down her face. Stella brings the phone back and Jen dials the number.

"Hello" Gwen says groggily but perks up hearing Lena crying.

"Hey" Jen answers "sorry to wake you up but Lena is really upset and wanted to see you." Jen says 

"Hi baby. Lena honey calm down. It ok. Your ok." Gwen soothes 

"Mommy" Lena chokes out through her tears. "Mommy" 

At this point Blake wakes up hearing Lena crying so hard. 

"Lena baby, what's wrong? Why are you so upset?" Blake asks taking the phone from Gwen. 

"I want you." Lena says the sobs not letting up at all.

Blake looks to Gwen, who has moved out of the cameras view, and sees the tears in her eyes.

"Lena princess, do you want mommy and daddy to come get you princess?" Blake asks his heart breaking to see both of his girls crying.

"Yes daddy yes yes." Lena manages to get out between sobs. 

"Ok princess mommy and I will get up and come get you. Ok?" The little girl nods her head

"Otay daddy. Yove you."

"Love you too princess. We will be there soon."   
............................................  
BLAKE AND GWEN

The moment the phone is hung up, Gwen is frantically getting dressed. Blake moves to get out of bed and get dressed too but not as fast as Gwen had. By the time Blake gets his pants on Gwen is fully dressed in a pair of shorts and his Cardinals sweatshirt. 

"Blake I'm ready. Let's go." 

"I gotta get my shirt on sunshine. Have you seen my black cardinals sweatshirt?"

"Maybe" Gwen says walking into the closet. Blake's laughter fills the room as he spots his wife wearing the very sweatshirt he was looking for. 

"I guess I lost that sweatshirt." Blake laughs pulling on his Anaheim hillbillies sweatshirt. Gwen had designed the hoodie as well as t-shirts and with the help of Chuck she had even gotten it trademarked. 

"Blake come on we need to get to her." 

"I just need shoes baby."

"I don't want her to feel like we abandoned her. She needs us babe." 

"Gwen baby she isn't gonna think that." 

"Can we just go get her please Blake?"

"Yeah but come here first." Gwen walks over to Blake. He wraps his arms around her and pulls her into him. "I was right. You're an amazing mom, you know that?"

"I love you Blakey. Now let's go get our daughter."   
.................................................  
Blake and Gwen pull into the driveway of Todd's house. Gwen is immediately out of the car making her way to the door. Jenn opens the door just as Gwen reaches the porch.

"Mommy!" Lena yells the second she lays eyes on Gwen.

"Baby girl" Gwen says as Lena reaches her and she pick her up.

Lena is crying so hard she can barely breath as she clings to Gwen. Blake walks up to his girls wrapping them in his arms.

"Princess it's ok. Calm down. Mommy and daddy are right here." 

They stay like that until Lena begins to calm down. Blake finally lets go of his girls before taking Lena from Gwen. She instantly buries her face in his chest.

"Daddy I miss you." 

"I missed you too baby girl." Blake answers rubbing circles on her back.

"Thanks for letting her stay over Jen. Sorry for the middle of the night wake up." Gwen thanks Jen while rubbing Lena back not being able to stand not touching her.

"It's ok. No worries. We love you Lena."

"Yove you Aunt Jenn" Lena says finally calm.

Blake loads Lena into her car seat while Gwen gets in the backseat with her. Blake looks at Gwen and shyly smiles back. 

"Mommy hand pease." Lena asks reaching her hand out to Gwen. Blake starts the car and they head home. As they stop at a stoplight the next song comes on the radio. The minute the voice comes through the speakers Lena starts yelling "Daddy! Daddy! It's daddy mommy!"

"Oh my gosh Blake! Babe it's your single!"

"Oh my gosh! I can't believe this is happening!"

"Daddy sing!"

"Yeah baby! Daddy is singing! You did it babe!"

"Wow I don't even know how to feel! It's 4 am and I'm on the radio!"   
..................................................  
Blake and Gwen carry Lena into the house and the tears begin again. 

"Baby what's the matter?"

"Mommy! Sleep with mommy and daddy! Pease!" She said sobs wracking her body. 

"Yeah baby you can sleep with mommy and daddy tonight."

"Tank you mommy!"  
\---------------------------------------  
When Gwen and Blake wake the next morning they head downstairs to make some breakfast for to start their day. Blake's phone rings pulling him out of his concentration as he cuts vegetables for their omelets. 

"Hello!" he answers

"Blake my man...it's Jake...how are you doing?"

"Good morning sir..I mean Jake...I am great thank you; and you?"

"I am great..do you know why I am great Blake? Let me tell you...because we released your single "God Gave Me You" over to radio stations and they are loving it. Early reports are projecting it hits number one in no time at all. You're a hit man!"

"Oh my God...Jake I heard it on the radio this morning and I just can't believe it. I am so happy. I couldn't have done this without your support at the label. I promise I won't let you down. We will keep making hits."

"Revel in it Blake...enjoy the moment because before you know it you will have to do some shows and interviews so everyone can put a face to the name of the new star of country music. Look I have some more calls to make but I just wanted to congratulate you man...it is well deserved. Have a blessed day man!"

"Thank you Jake. I appreciate it immensely! I look forward to talking with you again soon! You have a blessed day as well."

Gwen could see the happiness on Blake's face when he hung up. He had put the phone on speaker so she could hear what Jake had said.

"Babe I am so proud of you. You are doing it! You're dream of being the next big thing in country music is coming true. You deserve it!" Gwen says pulling him in a for a hug and a kiss.

"Thank you baby. It is all working out. Now all we need is the call from the realtor and to decide on surrogacy."

Just as they had turned back to finish making breakfast Blake's phone rang again; this time it was the real estate agent. It had been a while since they put in their offer so maybe it was good news.

"Hello is this Blake?"

"This is him..good morning ma'am" he replied

"Good morning Blake. If your wife is there she might want to hear what I have to say as well so if you would like to put me on speaker please do."

"Okay go ahead ma'am; Gwen and I are both listening."

"Okay...so I heard back from the seller of the property you liked....."

"And" Gwen asked

"And....ummm...Congratulations are in order...you are the new owners of an ocean front property in Malibu."

"OH MY GOD BLAKEY...WE GOT IT!" Gwen screams. She was so loud that Lena came walking down the stairs, very carefully, "mommy mommy what wrong?"

"Oh nothing princess...I didn't mean to wake you. Do you remember the house you saw by the water? Would you like to live there?"

"Ooooo yes mommy!"

Blake picked up his phone and took it off speaker "Ma'am..thank you so much for everything. Let me know when we need to come in and sign the paperwork and we will be there. Have a great day!"

"You do the same Blake and congratulations again!"

"Babe...oh my god we got the house. I can't believe it. I am so excited to decorate it!"

"I am happy you are happy baby. That is what truly matters. Now let's finish this breakfast so we can eat!"  
\---------------------------------------  
Once they were finished Blake offered to clean up while Gwen and Lena got ready. The agent had called back and said they could actually go in at noon to sign all of the papers to become home owners. Blake finished the dishes and went upstairs to get ready. While he was showering he couldn't help but think about how his life was turning out. He couldn't be happier; the only other thing he could ask for was a baby with Gwen. Unbeknownst to him his wife was in the middle of a phone call that neither knew the significance of.

When he came out of the bathroom to get dressed Gwen called to him to meet her in the studio. She was in sketching with Lena. He got dressed in one of his favorite blue flannels, jeans, and his signature boots and headed to find his wife.

"What's up darlin?"

"Oh hey...umm Todd and Jen invited us to dinner tonight at 5...I told them it was okay. Is that alright?

"Yeah of course. Let's go get these papers signed and we can swing by the new house and come up with a plan as to what all we need since it is bigger than this one. Then we can head to dinner."

The couple found themselves driving to Todd and Jen's a few hours later having signed their paperwork and getting handed the keys to their new home. They spent some time exploring; Gwen planning decor the whole time while Blake occupied Lena. As they drove up to her brother's house Gwen took Blake's hand and asked "what do you think this is about Babe? Jen was really mysterious as to why they wanted to do dinner considering we were just there."

"I don't know baby but let's not read into and just enjoy the company. I like your brother...he is fun to hang out with and Jen is a sweetheart."

They walked to the door and Jen greeted them with Stella in tow. "Aunt Gwen, Uncle Blake...you're back."

"Yep here we are Stella! Lena look who's here!"

"Sella...Sella" she said as Gwen put her down to go play with her cousin.

Jen gave the couple hugs and lead them to the kitchen. "We thought we'd eat outside today...it is a nice day."

Everyone went to sit outside as Todd brought the food out to the table. They got the kids situated with their meals and sat down to eat their own. There was an awkward silence at first so Blake broke the ice.

"So what's up guys? Not that we don't enjoy coming over but two nights in one week? Is everything okay?"

Jen looks at Todd and he smiles at his wife, squeezes her hand in reassurance and nods for her to tell his sister the news.

"Umm okay. So Todd and I had a really serious, long discussion after you mentioned the other day that you are considering surrogacy. I cannot imagine what you are going through Gwen. I know how much I always wanted to give Todd children; so to see you struggling like this is just heartbreaking. BUT!" she says before Gwen can interrupt. "I have a suggestion."

Blake and Gwen look at each other then to Todd and Jen sitting opposite of them. "Okay what's your suggestion Jen?" Gwen asks.

"Well after a lot of consideration" Jen replies "and research" Todd adds "I have decided, with Todd, that I want to offer to be your surrogate so you can have the baby you both deserve!" Jen says with tears in her eyes.

Blake's jaw drops "ummm Jen are you serious?" he looks to Gwen who has her mouth covered with her hand as she gasped. Tears are streaming down her face.

"Jen".... "oh my god"...."Jen are you serious?"

"Yes Gwen. You have been through hell. You finally found the man you are meant to be with and you both deserve to have a baby and Lena deserves to have a sibling" she says reaching across the table to take Gwen's hand in hers.

"But Jen what about y'all?" Blake asks "I know Gwen has mentioned you want more children."

"I want to do this for you. If it means I have a child after I can help give you both your own then so be it. When it is meant to be for Todd and me it will happen. I have faith in that. If anyone deserves this it is you two" she tells Blake "I appreciate the concern but I have no doubt that this is the right thing to do."

"Jen...I don't know what to say" Gwen adds

"I do" Blake chimes in "Jen..this has to be the most unselfish thing anyone has ever done. I for one cannot thank you enough for being willing to do this for our family. No matter what this child will be loved by his or her mom and dad...and the best aunt and uncle he or she could ask for."

"I know Blake and that is why Todd and I agreed that this is doable. One of Gwen's and for that matter my concerns was that any other surrogate would take the baby and leave. This way you don't have to worry about that and Todd and I will still be able to be active in the baby's life."

Gwen looked at Blake "are you okay with this babe?"

"I am okay with this so long as you are and so long as Todd and Jen are" Blake answers.

"Jen...you know you are like another sister to me. I cannot think of the right words to tell you just how thankful I am to you and Todd for doing this for us. I will forever be in your debt for this!"

"Gwen you owe us nothing. If we were in the same boat I have no doubt you would do the same thing. We are family. We help each other out in situations like this if we can. I am just happy that I can give this gift to you and Blake. By me doing this you will be able to be more involved in the entire process than with any other surrogate. I am honored to do this for you" Jen tells Gwen as she stands up and walks over to the couple. Blake and Gwen pull her into a hug and thank her more. Todd jumps up and runs over to get in on the action "what the hell am I chopped liver...dang I am going to have to put up with the pregnancy hormones" he says laughing.

The trio pull him in to their group hug and the girls start laughing..."hey what about us?" Stella asks. The couples separate and grab their girls and bring them in for a big family hug. The girls laugh as Blake tickles them "y'all aren't chopped liver...just chopped broccoli" he says laughing. "Just kidding y'all are our princesses and you know it...now let's hug it out."

When the family sits back down at the table for some dessert Gwen tries to soak it all in. Did that just happen? Did her sister-in-law...one of her best friends just offer to be a surrogate for her? She did...she and Blake were going to be able to have their own biological child and she could not be happier. As her husband regaled Todd and Jen with stories from Nashville and hearing his song for the first time on the radio Gwen closed her eyes and said a prayer thanking anyone who was listening for her life and promising that she would never do anything to let anyone down.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey peeps so I'm traveling the bulk of Saturday so it maybe Sunday before we update again.


	5. The Results are In

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait we have being going through some stuff and couldn't get this update out till now. Hopefully we will be back on track and life won't cause us and more roadblocks. Thanks for ur patience and support!

Blake and Gwen had met with the fertility center and asked all of their questions. After receiving the answers they decided to move forward and take Jen up on her offer. So, here they are one month after the fertilized embryos were planted hoping they get the pregnancy call.  
.................................................  
The phone rings and Gwen walks over to it seeing its Jen she picks it up.

"Hello?" 

"Gwen what are you doing?" 

"Nothing just watching the Backyardigans with Lena. Why?"

"Come over. I think I'm pregnant." 

"Oh my gosh are you serious? I'll be there in 15 minutes."

Gwen packed and loaded both Lena and herself faster than ever. The whole drive there her heart was racing. Jen thinks she is pregnant. Jen thinks she is pregnant! Gwen wishes it was her but the fact that Jen is including her in this process at every step helps. They arrive at Jen's and Stella is waiting at the door for Lena. 

"Mommy I go play?" 

"Of course baby! Go ahead!" 

Lena runs off with Stella and Gwen makes her way to Jen's master bathroom. Gwen finds Jen in the bathroom waiting for her, holding the box of pregnancy tests just staring at them. Gwen can't tell if Jen is scared, sad, having second thoughts about all of this or what. Gwen stands there a minute trying to read her but comes up short. 

"Jen?" Gwen says timidly 

"Gwen! Are you ready?!?"

"Yeah! Are you ok though?" 

"I'm good why?" 

"Well I saw you standing here and you didn't seem ok."

"Oh. I'm good... I'm just scared." 

"What are you scared about?" Gwen asks waiting for her heart to be broken and her world to fall apart. 

"I'm scared....I'm scared I'm wrong, that I'm not pregnant and that I got your hopes up for nothing." 

"Oh my gosh Jen! You scared me so much! I thought for sure you were having second thoughts about all of this!" Gwen says releasing a breath.

"Oh Gwen no! No never! Whenever I find out that I am pregnant, which is hopefully today, the baby is yours not mine. I would never take the baby from you! That's why I wanted to do this for you, so you don't have to live with that fear." 

"Blake and I can't thank you enough. We owe you the world." 

"No way I want to do this for you. You don't owe me anything." 

"Thanks Jen." The two women wrap each other in a hug.

"Lets find out if you are having a baby." Jen says. 

Gwen smiles from ear to ear with pure hope and excitement. Jen pees on all three tests and the women nervously wait.

"Have you guys talked to Lena about having more kids?" 

"No we want to treat her and this pregnancy as normal as possible. If it was us trying to get pregnant the traditional way we wouldn't have told her till we were pregnant."

"How long have we been waiting?" Jen asks 

"Hmmmm like 3 minutes." 

"Ok are we ready to check?"

"Yeah let's do this. Together." 

The women walked up to the counter where the three tests were and looked. All three tests displayed perfectly clear plus signs. Jen is pregnant. She is pregnant with Gwen and Blake's baby. Jen reaches for Gwen's hands placing them on her stomach, where in a few months time there would be a bump. Gwen can feel the connection to the tiny human in her Sister-in-law's belly. Tears spill out of Gwen's eyes when all her fears of not having a bond with the baby disappear. She is whole-heartedly attached to the little human. What does surprise her, as well as warm her heart, is that this feeling is no different than the one she has for Lena. It makes her smile again knowing Lena was was born to be her baby girl. 

"I'm so happy for you guys! You deserve it!"

"Thank you for giving us the baby we have always wanted!" 

"You don't have to thank me. How are you gonna tell Blake?"

"I don't know yet but I know he is gonna be so excited! It has to be perfect! We have to tell Lena now to. I don't know how she is gonna take it. She is so used to having our undivided attention and because of everything she has been through, we have been even more attentive to her than a regular child." 

"She will get there Gwen. She has been through a lot worse than a new sibling. You guys aren't disappearing and your not gonna ignore her now. I would try to include her in everything and set aside time for her to have one on one time with each of you. My friend said that's what really helped their daughter adjust to their new baby." 

"Yeah I just don't want her to feel like yet again she isn't loved." 

"Gwen trust me that little girls knows she is loved! She has been with you for almost two years now. She likely doesn't even remember that feeling because you and Blake have done nothing but show her what real love is. She will never feel unloved. I promise you that."   
\---------------------------------------------------  
On the way home Gwen devises a plan in her head to surprise Blake with the news. He has been in the L.A. studio for Rare Records all week laying down more tracks and doing promotional work for his first single so she wanted to make it special. Before she gets home she stops off at the Whole Foods and decides to make vegetarian lasagna, mixed greens salad, bread sticks, and a surprise for desert. It had dawned on her she needs to find a way to tell him they are getting what they prayed for, a biological child, part him and part her. So she decided to make a simple jello parfait with both pink and blue jello with crushed graham crackers and whipped cream.

Once she arrives home she lays Lena down for a nap in her room. Ever since moving into their new house Lena didn't sneak in as much. She had her own space decorated just to her liking so she was comfortable there. Gwen went to the kitchen to get started because she knew Blake would be back in a few hours and she wanted dinner to go perfectly. She started with the pasta and while her noodles were cook she started the desert so the Jell-O would set right. Once she was done with that she finished with the salad. While the lasagna baked she went to shower and change. Lena would be with them for dinner but that didn't mean she couldn't get a little dressed up for it. As the clock approached 7PM she got Lena dressed and finished setting the table, lighting candles, placing the fresh sunflowers in the center of the table and dimming the lights a bit for ambiance.

The front door opens and she hears her husband's laughter as his daughter comes crashing into his long legs.

"Hey princess how was your day?"

"Daddy...we had fun. I played wif Stella."

"Did you now...I bet that was fun. Where is mommy?"

"Mommy's in here" she said as she lead him to the dining room just as Gwen was finishing setting the food out on the table.

Gwen turns around and walks over to Blake embracing him in a hug. 

"Hey there cowboy how was your day" she says tip toeing up to give her husband a kiss.

Blake returns the kiss "it was good sunshine...did some radio interviews and then went to the studio" he leans back in for another kiss "how about yours?"

"It was great...we went to see Jen so the girls could play. I did some work from home today and sent sketches to Chuck via messagner." Gwen says looking into his ocean blue eyes "Come sit down...I made dinner for us."

"Wow baby what is all of this for? What did I do to deserve this?"

"No reason...just wanted to do something special for you babe. You've been working so hard and a lot of the time you do the cooking so I wanted to return the favor."

The couple takes their seats with their daughter and start their meal.

"Gwen..baby this is so good. I know I am not one to eat many vegetarian dishes but this is delicious. Mmmmm and these bread sticks...so good." Blake says making Gwen laugh at his dramatization.

As they finish up their meal Gwen excuses herself to go the kitchen to get the desert. Blake is playing with Lena at the table, joking around, when Gwen comes back in. She sets the little desert glasses with the parfait in front of Blake and Lena and takes hers and sits down. Blake looks at the desert and asks Gwen "what's this?"

"Oh I made a Jell-O parfait babe. It is strawberry and blue raspberry Jell-O, crushed graham crackers, and whipped cream...nothing special. Why you don't like it?"

"No baby, no it is good, it's just that I have never known you to want Jell-O that much since you got out of the hospital. You always say you had enough of it there."

"Well there is a reason behind this desert babe" Gwen says as she stands to walk over to Blake. He pushes his chair back and she sits in his lap.

"And what would that reason be baby?"

"Well, there was a reason Jen invited us over today babe."

"Gwen is everything okay...what's going on?"

Gwen can see Blake is nervous. He is just as anxious as she was before knowing the results of the test and he didn't even know that was the reason Jen had called. She runs her hand through his curls and leans down to give him a passionate kiss relaying to him that all is okay.

"Babe...Jen called me to go over because she had some news for us. When I got there she was getting ready to take a pregnancy test...well 3 actually." Gwen says with a small chuckle

"And?"

Gwen smiles at Blake and tells him the news "Andddd......she's pregnant babe...she is pregnant with our baby!"

Blake looks at Gwen in disbelief, tears forming in his eyes "are you sure baby?"

"Well she took three tests right in front of me so she and I are pretty sure but we will go to see the doctor just to be safe."

Blake pulls Gwen into him kissing her with such passion and sensuality that she has to pull away and remind him the Lena is there. Their daughter is laughing "mommy and daddy kissing" she says.

Blake looks at Lena "Mommy and Daddy are very happy baby girl." 

He looks back to Gwen "come on baby...let's get her to bed and we will go to bed too" he says with a twinkle in his eyes. They get Lena a quick bath and get her dressed for bed. Gwen leaves Blake to read her a story while she gets ready for bed. Unbeknownst to Blake she even has a surprise there too....a new little negligee she has been saving for a special occasion.

When Blake walks into their room after putting his daughter to bed he stops dead in his tracks when he sees his wife walking from the en-suite in a teal blue negligee that he has never seen. It makes it seem like her legs go on for days. He walks up to Gwen, places his hands on her hips, and leans into her for a kiss. When he finally pulls away he takes her by the hand gently laying her on the bed. As he hovers over her he can't control the emotions...the tears begin to flow.

"Blake what's wrong babe?"

"Nothing Sunshine...it's just you are so beautiful and with the news you gave me tonight baby...you have made me so happy. I cannot believe we are getting our little baby boy or girl. A sibling for Lena. Gwen...a couple years ago I was at rock bottom and meeting you changed everything. I always dreamed of a life like this and you have given it to me. I promise baby that I will never let you or our children down. I will do whatever it takes to make you happy and to provide for you. I love you Gwen...ALWAYS!"

"I love you too babe...ALWAYS!"


	6. Revelation

Gwen lays in bed her head on Blake's chest; her favorite place. His arm wrapped around her as he traces circles on her back. 

"We have to tell Lena now." 

"Yeah she is gonna be ok, you know that; right baby." 

"How are you so sure?" 

"I know because she is our daughter. If she has a harder time with it, she has you and me to help her. We aren't gonna let her not be ok." 

"She has been through so much. I just don't want her to have to go through something else that we caused." 

"Gwen she is gonna be ok. Plus it's kinda a done deal baby. Jen is already pregnant." Blake chuckles as Gwen playfully slaps his chest.

"Tomorrow we will tell her. Ok baby?" 

"Yeah, ok."  
....................................................  
That morning Blake had fixed chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast, Lena's favorite. She ate three whole pancakes. Gwen took her upstairs and got her dressed. When they came back down they decided it was the best time to tell her. Gwen is terrified that this will go disastrously. 

"Lena baby, can come sit on daddy's lap?" Gwen asks

Len runs to Blake and he lifts her above his head, making her laugh, before settling her on his lap. He wraps his free arm around Gwen. Blake still can't believe this is his life. He has a wife and a daughter in his arms and he can't wait to add their new addition to the embrace. 

"Lena would you like mommy and daddy to get you a baby brother or sister?" Gwen asks cautiously.

"Baby? I want baby mommy!" 

"Well mommy and daddy are having a baby. You're gonna be a big sister." 

"Where baby now?" Lena asks pulling Gwen's shirt up to look at her belly. This kills Gwen and tears spring into her eyes.

"Well Lena mommy can't have babies in her belly. So the doctors put our baby in aunt Jen's belly." Blake explained 

"My baby brother in Aunt Jen's belly?" 

"That's right the baby is in Aunt Jen's belly but we don't know if it's a boy or girl. So it might be a sister." Gwen informs her daughter

"I want brother! When we get baby?" 

"In about 8 months which is a pretty long time."Gwen says 

Lena took the news a lot better than Gwen thought she would. However, when they take her to the park and to lunch after their talk, she starting behaving badly.

"Lena that's enough! We don't throw spoons! You know better!" Gwen scolded 

Lena melted down for the what seemed like the 500th time since they had told her.

"Lena what is going on? You're always my good little princess! Where did that Lena go?Blake asks

"Daddy if you get new baby me go away?" 

"Lena NO! You aren't going anywhere baby. You're with mommy and me forever!" Blake exclaims. 

Gwen is over come with the motherly need to protect and reassure her daughter. She moves over closer to Lena pulling her out of her booster seat and into her lap. 

"Lena we are NEVER gonna send you away. I promise! Mommy and daddy love you so much! You will always be our princess! A new baby isn't replacing you it's just adding to our family. I love you so much Lena never forget that!" 

"I love you too mommy!" Lena says wrapping her arms around Gwen and squeezing her tight.   
............................................  
Blake has a concert coming up so all of his family flew in to be there. Patti had suggested having dinner together at her house. So here they all are at Patti's house preparing for dinner. All the kids ran outback to play on the swing set while the adults finished the last minute things for dinner.

"Gwen will you get the kids in?" Pattie asks

"Of course mom." 

Gwen calls all the kids into the house and helps them get their jackets off. Gwen and Blake knew they where telling the rest of the family tonight about the baby. So they had gotten Lena a t-shirt that says "Best Big Sister" and decided to wait until someone paid enough attention to notice it. The whole family sits down at the table and suddenly a fork crashes to a plate. Everyone turns to the source and looks to see what she is looking at. Dot is sitting there frozen looking at Lena and this is the moment everyone notices. Endy is the first to be able to say anything. 

"Does that mean what we all think that means?" Endy asks looking to Blake and Gwen 

"Well it actually does. We decided to move forward with the surrogacy idea and our surrogate is pregnant with our baby now." 

"Oh my gosh! You guys are having a baby? Like a baby that is genetically yours?" Dot asks tears streaming down her face.

"Who is the surrogate?Do we know we can trust her?" Patti asks still feeling skeptical of the whole idea. 

"Well considering I am the surrogate I would certainly hope so." Jen jumps in. 

"What?" Both Patti and Dennis say

"I'm pregnant with their baby. I offered and it just made sense." 

Dot, Patti, and even Dennis just sit there staring. Endy however is beyond excited.

"Oh my gosh! I'm so happy for you guys! Jen I don't know you that well but I have a feeling we are gonna be best friends!" Endy exclaims 

"I'm so happy for the two of you! Jen thank you so much for the help you are giving my son and Gwen!" Dot says 

"It's my pleasure. I wanted to help." 

"Jen...thank you!" Is all Patti can get out behind the tears.

The whole family is up and exchanging hugs. Blake stands there holding Lena, and watches his blended family and couldn't be any more content and happy.  
.................................................  
Jen had managed to make an appointment with her obstetrician for the next week so Gwen was currently getting Lena ready to go meet Jen at the doctor to confirm the pregnancy. Blake woke up late so he was running around getting dressed so he could join them. He had rearranged his schedule this morning to be there for Gwen just in case they didn't receive the news they wanted. As they approached the office of Dr. Park Blake squeezed Gwen's hand reassuring her that no matter what everything would work out. They went to the waiting area to meet Jen and Todd while they waited for their name to be called. Gwen couldn't stop bouncing her leg she was so nervous. Blake leaned into her and whispered into her ear "Baby it's going to be okay. Don't be nervous. If it is meant to be it will be."

The nurse called Jen's name "Jen Stefani?"

"Right here" she replied

"If you would follow me please we will get you all set up. Just take this and place the sample in the little door in the bathroom and we will run the test."

"Umm quick question" Jen said "umm I am going to be the surrogate for my sister-in-law so would it be possible for she and her husband to join me in the room once I am changed?"

"Oh yeah that is fine so long as you are comfortable with it" the nurse reassures her.

Jen turns to Gwen and Blake "guys once I am changed and in the room the nurse will come get you so you can hear what the doctor has to say okay?"

Gwen responds to her sister-in-law first "only if you are okay with it Jen. We don't want you to feel uncomfortable."

"Gwen I already told you. We are in this together. When I signed on for this it was to be sure you would be included every step of the way. This is your baby...you both need to be here for this okay. Trust me I am fine with this." Jen replies embracing Gwen.

"Okay sis...we will wait here until they come get us."

About 10 minutes later the nurse comes to the waiting room. "Mr. and Mrs. Shelton...Mrs. Stefani and the doctor are ready for you to join them now." Gwen tells Lena to stay with Todd and they follow the nurse to the room.

Dr. Park introduces himself and informs the trio that the nurse will be bringing in the results of the pregnancy test. The nurse knocks and enters the room with the documents for the doctor. The doctors reads over the documents and looks to Jen and the couple. "Okay so your at home tests were in fact correct. You are pregnant. So let's go ahead and do an ultrasound so we can see about how far along you might be okay?"

Blake looks to Gwen not truly understanding what is happening "is everything okay baby? Why are they bringing that machine in?"

Jen looks at the couple and chimes in "Blake look at me. I have been here before. This is perfectly normal. They are going to use a machine to take pictures inside my belly with a gel and wand like thing and you can see the baby on the monitor here."

You could see the tension leave Blake's shoulders "oh thank God. This is scary stuff when you don't know anything about it" he replies as Gwen lets out a chuckle.

"What are you laughing at sunshine?"

"Nothing babe..you're just cute. Everything is fine. I actually got to come with Jen for some of her appointments for Stella."

The ultrasound tech comes in and prepares Jen for the ultrasound. As they start the ultrasound Blake is looking at the screen with a puzzled look on his face. "Umm not to sound ignorant but am I supposed to be able to see anything?"

The ultrasound tech looks at Blake and smiles "right now I am just moving this around which sees inside the womb to see if I can find the fetus. Your sister-in-law was implanted a little more than a month ago so we will hopefully see a small formation...like a peanut or gummy bear if that helps. Now don't freak out because if I am calculating correctly you will find that Jen is about 5 to 6 weeks along so we won't be able to hear a heartbeat yet, but you will be able to at about 10 weeks so at the next ultrasound."

The tech keeps moving the device over Jen's belly until she proclaims "ah ha...here we go. See that right there?" she asks pointing to the screen "That is your baby. Now I will take some measurements and we will be able to determine how far along you are."

Gwen is standing by Jen holding her hand and Blake is right behind Gwen. "That is our baby sunshine. Oh my god...can you believe it?"

Gwen turns to Blake placing a kiss on his cheek and turns back to Jen "Jen...thank you so much. You have made us the happiest couple" tears begin running down Gwen's cheek.

"Gwen...it is my honor to be able to do this for you guys. You both deserve this after all you have battled through."

The tech chimes in again "okay so I am going to take a few pictures and I will make duplicates since you are in a unique situation." She prints the images for the couple and for Jen and passes along her congratulations.

"Best of luck to you all and I am sure I will see you in a month for your next ultrasound. The doctor will be back in to go over the next steps. Have a blessed day."

As the doctor comes back in he gives the trio the rundown of what needs to be done. Prenatal vitamins, exercise tips, and nutrition information. He tells them to see the nurse at the front to make an appointment for next month and ensure them that they will most likely get to hear the heartbeat. Blake and Gwen leave Jen to change and head out to the waiting room where Todd is waiting anxiously.

"So...were the tests right sis?"

Gwen walks to Todd giving him a hug "yeah bro....they were right. She's pregnant. We are so thankful for you both agreeing to help us with this."

Todd looks at Gwen "Honey we love you. It was Jen's decision to make not mine; all I have to do is support her in her journey and I will" he says embracing Gwen one more time before walking over to Blake and giving him a manly hug. "Congrats bro...I am so happy for you. I can't wait to see how you both decide to tell the family" Todd says smiling at Blake with a mischievous look in his eyes. When Jen appears they all head to their vehicles to be on their way. Gwen hugs her brother and sister-in-law and takes Lena from Blake so he can do the same. As the couples part ways and head to their respective homes Blake takes Gwen's hand and brings it to his lips placing a kiss on her knuckles.

"It is really happening isn't it baby?" 

"Yeah babe it is...we are going to have our baby! Can you believe it?"

"I am so happy baby...I cannot believe that it worked on the first implant. God must have plans for us huh?"

"He sure does babe....he sure does...and as long as I have you by my side it will all work out okay."  
...................................................  
Blake is on cloud nine this week. He has a beautiful wife, a new home, an adorable daughter, and a record deal with a hit single right out of the gate. But tonight he is more nervous than he has ever been in his life. He has been opening for Toby Keith at shows here and there in between his promo work but tonight the country legend had a show in L.A. of all places so Blake would be opening for him. Toby had taken him under his wing and showed him what an entertainer is. Now Blake wasn't the type to run all over the stage but he also didn't stand behind his mic stand all night. He mixed it up. Tonight was a game changer though. He had a lot of important people coming to the show; Gwen, Todd, Jen, Dennis, Patti, his Mom Dot, sister Endy, Endy's husband Mike, and his stepfather Mike. The kids were staying with Jen's very reliable sitter. Blake had to impress tonight...he didn't want anyone to be embarrassed by him.

As he prepared for the show Toby came to check on him in his dressing room "Hey man you okay in here? You look a little nervous!" he said to Blake with a quick smirk.

"I am so nervous man...I don't know what to do to calm down" Blake said with a concerned look.

"Look man...you have been great out there every night. I have no doubt you will be headlining your own shows in no time. But I think I might have just the thing to calm you down."

"Toby man...I can't have a drink...I am so nervous I would probably throw up" Blake says to his mentor

"Nah man...I am not here to give you a drink...I brought you a little surprise." He turns to the door "Hey there...come on in" he shouts.

When Blake looks up he sees Gwen standing in the doorway looking absolutely stunning in a royal blue and white party dress. She is gorgeous and a site for sore eyes. He knew she was coming but he didn't plan on being able to see her until after the show. He jumped up from his chair and ran to Gwen wrapping her in his big arms. He breathed in her scent and immediately relaxed. He pulled back just enough to look into her eyes and he took her face into his hands as he leaned in for a kiss. Blake was so engrossed with Gwen he forgot where he was.

Toby cleared his throat "ahem ahem. I don't want to be a bother brother so I am going to head back to my dressing room. Gwen it was a pleasure to meet you. I hope you and your family enjoy the show. Blake...just keep doing you man...you have the crowds in the palm of your hands" he says as he slaps back on the back in a brotherly gesture.

"It was a pleasure to meet you Mr. Keith...thank you for all you have done for Blake. I know I speak for both of us when I say it is truly appreciated."

"Darlin' the pleasure is mine. You have a very talented husband..one that will do great things for country music for many years to come...I have no doubt."

"Thanks Toby...I appreciate you man...I will see you out there" Blake adds.

Gwen sits with him until it is almost time to take the stage. They walk down the hall to the side stage area Blake will emerge from and Gwen wishes him luck...

"Babe...you are going to do great. You know where we are sitting...just look at me at any time and it will all be okay. I love you and I am proud of you! Knock em dead Cowboy" she says pulling his face to hers and placing a kiss on his lips. She turns to leave to find her seat.

"Gwen!" Blake yells over the noise "I love you baby! Thank you for being here!"

The lights go down and the first chords resonate through the stadium. Gwen is standing up, excitement coursing through her veins. It is then that she hears Blake's voice surrounding her. He had told her about the song he was opening with...one called "Ol Red". The crowd is on their feet even though he is a new artist. Some of the fans already know the entire album whereas others are hearing him for the first time but no matter what Gwen is proud because her man has the crowd singing along, eating it up. Blake has been on for about an hour when she hears the song...her song...the one he wrote for her. He had told her about the other songs on the album but she was honored when he had mentioned that the label had chosen his song he wrote for her in their studio as his single. Sure it was a big deal to hear it on the radio, but to see him perform it live as he forgot the rest of the audience and sang right to her was beautiful.

"Ladies and Gentlemen...y'all have been amazing to me this evening and I truly hope you have enjoyed my portion of the show. Before Toby comes out, if you would indulge me, I will sing my first single "God Gave Me You" for you to close this out. This song was written for my wife. She is the strongest woman I know. She has battled through illness only to come out of it stronger than she has ever been and it is my honor to have been by her side. So Gwen baby...you already know this...but this song is for you...I love you sunshine!"

When he finishes his song he thanks the crowd one more time. He makes his way off the stage and Toby is there to congratulate him on yet another successful set. As he approaches his dressing room he sees her; tears running down her face. Gwen hears him walking her way with his band in tow and looks up to her husband. His and her family waiting in the wings. She moves into his outstretched arms and lets him taker her into his embrace.

"Baby don't cry. I didn't mean to make you cry."

"Blake no...these are happy tears. I am so proud of you. You were amazing up there. The crowd loved it...I loved it...everyone loved it!"

"Thank you baby....you don't know how much that means to me" Blake says kissing her with fervor. When they break away he is greeted by both families. His mom is in tears too. Her baby finally made it. His dream has come true.

"Blake....son...I am so proud of you" Dot said "you never gave up on your dream and look at you now!"

Dennis and Patti congratulate Blake and Patti can't help but comment on the song "Blake...son...your last song was beautiful. The fact that you wrote that about our daughter shows us even more how much you love her...not that we ever doubted that. We are truly proud of you." Patti gives him a hug and Dennis comes to his son-in-law "Son..that was amazing. God gave you a talent and to see you share that with others is inspiring."

As Blake got congratulations from the rest of his family and Gwen's he soaked it all in. He was so grateful he was here. He made a promise to himself then and there that he would do whatever it took to continue making music and sharing it with the world. If it made his family this happy he was sure he could touch many more. He turned to his family, put his arm around Gwen's shoulder and tucked him into his side...

"Alright y'all...what do you say we get out of here...grab some food and celebrate?"

The families made their way out of the venue reveling in the fact that their son, husband, brother, son-in-law, brother-in-law, father for that matter had done it....no one prouder than Gwen!


	7. Full Disclosure

Jen is almost 16 weeks along so the doctor had mentioned at their last checkup that they could come back at 16 weeks to see the gender if they wanted to. Gwen and Blake would accompany Jen but the ultrasound tech would only reveal to Jen the gender of the baby. It would be a surprise to everyone else. When they arrived at the doctor's office they told the nurse of their plans for a gender reveal party so that the tech would be informed to send Gwen and Blake out of the room before looking for gender. They would be able to hear their baby's heartbeat and stay for measurements to make sure all was okay.

As they waited in the room Gwen teased Jen.

"Now are you sure you can keep this secret from me? You know I wouldn't want that information to suddenly slip!" 

"Gwen don't even try it...I am going to be like Fort Knox...I am going to guard this information with my life...there is nothing you or your damn husband's dimples can do to get it out of me" Jen says laughing

"Hey don't bring me into this" Blake replies laughing at Jen "I don't want to know yet because I definitely couldn't keep the secret!"

Dr. Park walks in and greets the trio. "Good afternoon everyone...how are you feeling Jen?"

"I feel great doc....excited to be able to see the gender today hopefully."

Before we proceed "Mr. and Mrs. Shelton do you have any questions as to how this is going to go today?"

Blake speaks for the couple "no sir...Jen was able to explain it all to us."

Okay then...I am going to do my part then I will send Camila in to do the ultrasound. The doctor proceeds to measure Jen's belly and listen for heart beat. He checks over all of her vital signs and informs her as to what to expect in the next phase of the pregnancy. He excuses himself and lets the tech in.

"Afternoon you guys" Camila greets them with a smile "are we ready for this? The nurse explained to me that when it is time for me to look at gender mom and dad will be leaving the room...is that correct?"

Gwen speaks up "yes ma'am it is..we plan on finding out the gender at the reveal party with everyone else."

Camila nods in agreement "okay then let's begin. First I will be looking for heartbeat." As she moves the wand all over Jen's stomach they all begin to hear the whooshing sound that is their baby's heart beat. The tech tells them that the baby's heart rate is perfectly normal; nice strong beats. She then begins to measure the baby. She points out the arms and legs that are continuing to grow; shows them the nose and head. It is time though to try to get the baby to reveal its gender.

"Okay..mom and dad...this is where you exit. I will try to get the baby to move into a position to reveal the gender. As soon as Jen here gets changed she'll be out with the envelope containing a picture with the gender on it" Camila says with an amused look on her face. Blake and Gwen tell Jen they will be right outside in the waiting room as they exit. Jen is excited to be able to share the news with her family. She is so grateful she is able to do this for Gwen.

"Okay Miss Camila...let's find out the gender!" Jen says

Camila starts moving the wand while rubbing on Jen's belly to get the baby to move a bit. As she does so the baby decides to stretch their little legs and voila! She sees it...."Do you see Jen the baby is....."

Jen leaves the room and heads out to find Gwen and Blake waiting for her. "Sooo...what did she say" Gwen asks.

"Uh uh uh...not happening Gwen...but good try. You will have to wait like everyone else at the party. Now feed me and your little baby.....boy or girl! We are hungry and you promised me food today!"  
...............................................  
Gwen went to pick up the balloons Jen had ordered. The gender reveal party is today. Gwen is excited; she wants to know what her little human is. Since they told Lena about the baby and eased her fears, she asks everyday if the baby is a brother or sister. Today when she got up and asked, Gwen was able to tell her that they would find out today. She immediately got up and was jumping up and down on her bed. When Gwen got back to their new house Jen and Endy had it completely decorated; all but the balloons. Both moms were in the kitchen prepping dinner.

"Hey!" Caroline said walking up to Gwen with open arms. 

"Caroline! You made it! Where is Luke?" Gwen asks leaning into the hug.

"He is out back with all the men manning the grill." 

"I know Blake is so happy to have you guys come here to share in this with us! He really misses hanging with Luke when we are here in LA." 

"Luke misses him to. He said you and Blake are the only people he would come to this concrete jungle for." Caroline and Gwen both laugh. 

"Well I'm glad you guys came. It really means a lot."

Gwen set the balloons aside before heading out back to let Blake know she is home and to find out how long until the food is ready.

"Hey Blakee." Gwen says walking up to her husband. 

He wraps his arms around her, bringing her in for a kiss on the lips. It's a little more passionate then maybe it should be with people around, but neither really care. 

"Dude that's my sister! Save it for the bedroom will ya!" Todd exclaims 

The couple breaks apart and Gwen's face is flushed. 

"Hey sunshine." He shows her his dimples. "Sorry Todd but I love her too much to save it all for the bedroom. We would never come out." 

If Gwen wasn't red before she sure is now. She tucks her head into Blake's chest. 

"Lunch will be ready in about fifteen minutes Gwen." Luke chimes in.

This pulls Gwen out of Blake's chest as she suddenly remembers she hadn't even said hi to Luke yet. 

"Hey Luke! I'm really glad you guys could come." Gwen says pulling away from Blake to give Luke a hug.

"Anything for you guys! Well more you than Blake." He jokes.

"I'm gonna go let the ladies know about the food and round up the kids." 

"Alright; love you sunshine." Blake responds as Gwen leans in pecking him on the lips quick before heading into the house. 

"That's a pretty amazing women you got there Blake. Dennis sir you raise one incredible person." Luke says.

"I second that Dennis. She is an amazing, as she would say, human being." Blake agrees.

"She has become a pretty amazing woman, but part of that is thanks to you as well Blake. I fully believe my daughter is still here thanks to you." 

"All I did was love her. Nothing admirable about that. She saved me too. I wasn't in a good place when we met either. It's crazy to thank about that time and now here we are with our family gathered to find out the gender of our baby. I just can't believe we are really gonna have a baby that's ours." 

"We are glad you could help with that Blake. You guys deserve all of your desires to come true." Todd says.   
.................................................  
After everyone had eaten they sat around the table chatting. It was Lena's nap time but because of the party they decided to let her stay up. She is curled into Blake's chest almost asleep anyway. So Gwen decided to go ahead and do the big reveal now before she falls asleep. They are trying to keep her very involved in this whole process in hopes that it would be easier on her when they bring the baby home. 

"Blake. Jen. Is it ok with you guys if we go ahead and pop the balloon now? I want to do it before Lena falls asleep." 

"Yeah that's fine with me. We can do it whenever." Jen says

"Yeah I want Lena involved like we talked about. Do you think we can let her pop the balloon?" 

"Aww yes that's a great idea Blakee." 

Lena perks up hearing her name in the same sentence as the word balloon.

"Blakee? Daddy Blakee?" 

Blake looked at Gwen not really knowing what to do. Gwen gave him a soft smile before reaching to take Lena into her arms. 

"Yes daddies name is Blake but you call him daddy not Blake, ok?" 

"Otay mommy. His name daddy." 

"That's right baby girl. Are you ready to find out if your getting a baby brother or a baby sister?" 

"YES YES YES!!!" Lena exclaims trying to jump up and down in Gwen's arms. 

"Okay let's get everyone outside!"

"Evweone outside!!!!" Lena yelled which made everyone laugh  
...........................................  
Everyone gathers outside in front of the balloon. The balloon was a big red heart. All that separated them from knowing the gender was the latex material the balloon was made of. 

"Everyone thanks so much for coming! We really need to think Todd, my brother, and his wife Jen because without them there wouldn't be a reason for this party. Everyone ready to find out if Blake needs to paint the nursery pink or blue?"Gwen asks

Everyone cheers and Lena claps her hands. 

"Princess you want to pop the balloon?"

"Yes daddy! Yes!" 

Blake and Gwen chuckle at their daughters excitement. Gwen gives Lena the stick to pop the balloon keeping her hand close for safety. 

"On the count of three, ok princess?" 

"Otay mommy!" 

Everyone yells together "one....two....three.." and Lena moves the stick to pop the balloon. As it pops powder starts flowing out onto the tarp below. Ninety percent of the adults are crying and Gwen has her face buried in Blake's chest. Blake's face is buried in her hair with one arm is still holding Lena, the other holds Gwen to him. The couple works to get themselves together as Luke and Caroline walk up to them.

"Congrats man. A little cowboy to carry on the name! Never thought we would be here. I'm really happy for you guys!" Luke says with Caroline tucked under his arm. 

"Thanks Buddy neither did we, neither did we." 

After Luke and Caroline walk away Gwen looks up at Blake to see tears in his eyes. 

"It's a boy babe. We are having a son!" Gwen says.

"I can't believe it. I can't wait to meet him." Blake answers.

"I get brother mommy!" 

"Yes princess you get the little brother you wanted." Gwen smiles.   
..............................................  
Gwen and Blake get home from the reveal party and they are ecstatic. They are having a baby boy! They couldn't get over the excitement that Lena exhibited when she finally understood she would get the brother she wanted. It had been a long day so as soon as they got home the bathed Lena, read her a bedtime story, and put her to bed for the night. After showering and changing the couple now lay snuggled in their bed; Gwen's head on her favorite spot...Blake's chest.

"Blakey" she asked

"Hmmm" he replied...he wasn't asleep but he was relaxing more than he had in weeks. Between shows, parties, and appointments he was exhausted.

"Babe do you have any ideas for names?"

"Ummm I am good with whatever you want" he replies

"Babe...help me out here...I want to you be a part of this too" Gwen pleads with Blake

"Umm okay well there are a few names I like for boys...I have to admit I have been looking at stuff on my phone..boy and girl names" Blake says smiling down at his wife.

Gwen shifts a bit so that she is facing Blake and he does the same.

"Okay" she says "so I like Conor, Angelo, and Antonio...what do you like babe?"

"Well...first off...I like Conor so I think that is a possibility babe" Blake replies "I was looking at Gabriel, Eron, or Jackson"

Gwen looks to Blake with a sincere smile "I like Jackson a lot babe...what does it mean?"

"Well when I looked it up it says it is a Scottish name that means 'God has been gracious; has shown favor'...I just thought it was fitting considering the manner in which we had to go about having him" he tells Gwen with concern in his voice. When he looked at the meaning of the name the first time he couldn't believe how much it fit their situation. He had clicked on the name because it sounded like the name of a strong boy and he just knew if he had a boy that he would teach him to be tough.

Gwen runs her hand along Blake's cheek and leans in for a slow, soft kiss "Babe...that is perfect. You picked the perfect name for our son. God has given us a gift in Jen agreeing to carry our son and by gifting her with our baby boy." When she pulls back a bit he can see the tears forming in her eyes.

"Baby don't cry...what's wrong?"

"Nothing is wrong babe...everything is perfect...we have been given the gift of our love, Lena as our daughter, and now a son on the way...I couldn't be happier..these are tears of joy" Gwen says "Hey I have an idea for a middle name babe!"

"Okay baby...shoot...what do you think should be Jackson's middle name?"

"Easy babe...our son's full name will be Jackson Tollison Shelton!"

"Baby...Tollison? Are you sure?" Blake inquires "You don't have to do that to make me happy!"

"Babe...I just think it would be cool since we used my middle name for Lena that we use yours for our son...make it a family tradition starting with us!"

"Well in that case sunshine...I am honored...Jackson Tollison Shelton it is!" Blake replied leaning into Gwen for another kiss "You have made me the happiest man alive Gwen Renee Stefani Shelton...I will spend the rest of my life showing just how much you mean to me and our babies. I love you gorgeous! ALWAYS!"

"I love you too my handsome cowboy! ALWAYS!"


	8. Lows and Highs

As the due date got closer Patti decided to surprise Gwen and Jen with a baby shower. She enlisted the help of Gwen's best friend Justine to make the gathering just perfect. She even got Dot's number from Blake to make sure she could get she and Endy to L.A. for the shower. Justine, Dot, Endy, and Patti were setting up the Stefani residence with all the decorations. They were having a boy so they decided on a theme of animals because Blake made the nursery look amazing with a subdued sea foam green on the walls and silhouettes of different animals strategically placed in the room. They got a cake delivered from Carlos' Bakery in Vegas that Blake went to pick up for Justine. The cake was in the same color scheme as the nursery with chocolate cutouts of an elephant, lion, and giraffe on top. Blake took the cake to Patti's place and dropped off some of the food they were having catered. He was their errand boy today. Unlike most baby showers, Gwen wanted Blake there. This was something they never thought they would have and may not get to have again so she wanted to make sure he experienced it.

The crew only had a couple hours left. Blake had helped by sending Gwen and Jen to a spa day to help them both relax but time was running out. They would arrive shortly. As the ladies began getting the decorations set up Dennis helped Blake get the food set up outside under the tent. It was a beautiful day in California so why not enjoy it they all thought. They had pasta salad, spaghetti, lasagna (meat and veggie), green salad, bread sticks, deviled eggs, fruit salad, a variety or tarts, and of course the cake that would knock people's socks off. All that was left to do was set up the various games for everyone to play; you know, name the baby food, baby word scramble, corny things like that that everyone plays at baby showers whether they like it or not.

With about an hour to go Blake scooped up Lena and took her into the spare room Patti and Dennis kept for the kids to nap in. She was extremely excited for today so he knew without a nap she would get cranky. When he got her to fall asleep he let Patti and Justine know he was heading to pick up Jen and Gwen. As he was exiting the house Todd pulled up bags in hand. 

"Hey bro!" he said to Blake

"Hey man you got the gifts?" Blake replied

"Yeah, the store had them wrapped and ready to go when I got there."

"Perfect...okay well Lena is napping, your mom, my mom, Endy, and Justine are finalizing decorations, and your Dad is getting the drinks in coolers. I am headed to get Gwen and your wife...be back within the hour."

Blake hopped in the SUV (lord knows they had to upgrade when they found out Jen was pregnant) and headed to the spa. Everyone that was invited would be arriving while Blake was enroute to and from the house. When they were finally headed back to Patti and Dennis's house Gwen took his hand and squeezed it to get his attention.

"Babe...thank you for today. Jen really needed that and I am glad I could go with her."

"It was nothing darlin'. You both deserve to be pampered" Blake said as they pulled into the driveway "Here we are...let's get the party started shall we?"

The trio walked inside and were greeted by a plethora of friends and family. Gwen wasn't sure how to react. She felt a little odd considering this shower was for her but Jen was the one pregnant and she wanted Jen to feel special too. Everyone was mingling when Patti announced that the food was ready for everyone. The party moved outside so everyone could enjoy the spread before them. Chatter was heard throughout the backyard as people caught up with one another some not seeing the other for months due to work and life in general. As the guests finished their food they decided to play a few games. Gwen was getting the hang of these games and won a couple times but gave her prizes to other mom's since she would be getting a lot of gifts. When it was time for the presents Lena went running to Gwen.

"Pwesents mommy! For me?" Everyone laughed when she asked Gwen if the gifts were for her.

"Aww no baby the gifts are for mommy and daddy to take care of your brother with."

"Okay but I want to open pwesents with mommy!" Lena said hugging Gwen.

"Okay baby girl you can help Aunt Jen and me open gifts."

"Gwen it's okay these are for you...you open them" Jen said

"Jen if it weren't for you we wouldn't be having our son so please enlighten me and help" Gwen said smiling at her sister-in-law.

As they opened gifts they were amazed at the kindness of their friends and family. They received diapers, blankets, mobiles, changing pads, burp cloths, toys, books...everything..you name it they got it. As they got to the last of the gifts they reached Patti and Dennis's gift. When they opened it Gwen gasped...she was looking at collage of family photos from the various gatherings they have had since meeting Blake. What really got her though was the pictures from the ultrasounds that they included making Baby Jackson part of the gift. Patti had even left some space open to add pictures of the baby once he was here. Blake put his arm around Gwen and kissed her temple before looking to Patti and Dennis.

"Thank you guys for this. Thank you for including the whole family in this gift. This is amazing!"

Blake went over to the table with the gifts and picked up two small, gift-wrapped boxes. He walked over to Jen and handed her the first box and then gave Gwen the second.

"Okay so I wanted to do something special for y'all because without both of you I wouldn't be a dad at all let alone to two children. So Jen...Gwen and I can never thank you enough for everything you have done for us. You have gone through almost 9 months of pregnancy to give us a son. I will never be able to repay you in any way other than being the best father I can be. Go ahead and open it."

"Thank you Blake. I am sure I will love it" Jen says as she opens the box. When she lifts the lid to the box she is take aback... "Oh my god Blake...this is stunning." Inside was a heart shaped necklace with the word surrogate vertically down the heart. Each letter forming another word...

Special  
Unique  
Remarkable  
Rare Treasure  
One of a kind  
Generous  
Admired  
Tender Soul  
Extraordinary

She showed the necklace to Gwen before standing up to hug Blake "You have made her the happiest I have ever seen her. Thank you for the gift of your love of Gwen and thank you for making me feel so special! You are a great man Blake!"

"You are quite welcome Jen. I am glad you like it!" Blake says returning the hug. "Okay sunshine...your turn."

Gwen opens the package from the gift wrapping and lifts the lid on the jewelry box. Inside she finds a necklace with and infinity symbol. But it is what is on the symbol that takes her breath away. Blake has had the kids names engraved on the symbol. Lena's birthstone at one end and space for Jackson's at the other.

"Babe...this is beautiful...where did you find this?"

"Oh well...you can both thank Endy for that...I told her what I wanted and she designed them and had them made by the studio she is partnering with now" Blake says proudly smiling at his sister.

Gwen gives Blake a hug and a kiss and goes over to Endy. "You have a gift girl...I know you will always work out of Oklahoma but I am going to make sure your jewelry get seen by millions...as accessories with our designs if I have anything to say about it. Thank you for this Endy. It means a lot but even more knowing family designed it."

As the night wound down Blake and Gwen thanked everyone for coming and for the gifts. They said their goodbyes and made their way to their car. As they drove off Blake took Gwen's hand in his, turned to her for a moment and said "Darlin' thank you for including me today. I know most men don't like that stuff but it meant a great deal to be a part of it. Thank you!"

"Always babe. You never know if we will be in this situation again so I wanted to make sure you got the whole experience. Now all we have to do is wait for Jackson to make his entrance in the world. Won't be long now!"

"I can't wait darlin'!"

"Neither can I babe...neither can I!"  
.......................................................  
Gwen and Blake are sitting in the doctor's office waiting for the doctor. This is just a check up with Gwen's oncologist. Lena is at Patti's house being spoiled by her Nona and Nono. Gwen woke up this morning with a feeling she can't seem to shake.

"Hey baby, what's the matter?"

"What?"

Blake lifts their hands to show her she is holding his hand so tight her knuckles are white. 

"I'm sorry." She says going to let go of his hand. 

However he doesn't let her go. He continues to hold on. 

"What's wrong baby? Talk to me Gwen."

"I don't really know. I've had this feeling since I woke up this morning. I feel like something bad is gonna happen. It's almost like a dreadful feeling." 

"I'm sure it's nothing baby, but if something bad happens I'm here. We are in this life together! Together we can do and concur anything." 

Gwen leans in and places a kiss on his lips. It's not a long or deep one, but it's one that conveys love, appreciation, and contentment. 

"I love you Blake."

"I love you to sunshine. ALWAYS."

"ALWAYS."   
.................................................  
The doctor came in the room and Blake feels Gwen's grip on his hand tighten. It doesn't matter that this isn't the first follow up, Gwen still gets anxious. What if it comes back? They have Lena now and a baby on the way too, to top it all off. Going through that again would be ten times harder, just by knowing the impact it would have on their little family. She can't imagine having to be in the hospital knowing Blake was at home with Lena. She has to stop herself before she goes to far down that path. 

"Gwen?" Blake says snapping her back to reality. 

"I'm sorry. Hi Dr. Portman." 

"Hi Gwen. How have you been feeling?" Dr. Portman asks.

"Good. I have been surprised actually with how good I have been feeling. We have a lot going on right now so I thought I would be a little more drained, but that hasn't been the case."

"That's very good! Your blood work looks great. Do you have any concerns you want to address?" 

"There is one thing I wanted to have you check. I'm sure it's just me freaking out over nothing but I figure it can't hurt to have you check it. Right......here I noticed a hard spot." Gwen said showing Dr. Portman a specific spot on her left breast. 

Dr. Portman walks over and begins feeling the spot. Gwen avoids eye contact with Blake. She hadn't told him about the spot because she didn't want him to worry. When she finally has the courage to look at him, she can see the worry etched onto his face. 

"Ok. I would like to do a biopsy. I'm concerned with how it feels and with your history I would much rather be safe then sorry." Dr. Portman explains

"You think the cancer is back?" Blake asks

"I'm not sure but it's a real possibility." 

"When do we do the biopsy?" Gwen asks.

"Today. As soon as we get you ready. Again, with your history I'm not willing to waste time." 

"Ok. Thank you."

Dr. Portman leaves the room to get ready and to rearrange his schedule. Gwen slowly looks at Blake and she sees the tears in his eyes. 

"Blake we don't know that it's cancer." 

"I can't lose you Gwen. We have two kids now. I can't raise them by myself! I can't teach Lena about periods and tampons or boys! I can't live without you Gwen." 

Gwen grabs Blake's face in her hands guiding him to look at her. As she holds back her own tears, she tries to calm her gorgeous husbands fears. 

"Blake stop. Look at me." His eyes finally meet hers and though no one else could tell, she feels him calm some. "We don't know if it's cancer yet. If it is, babe we fight like last time, ok?? I'm not going anywhere! I have you and our kids to fight for. If I can beat it once I can do it again."

"I love you so much Gwen!"

"I love you to Blake."   
....................................................  
Gwen is taken back into the OR, a place she never wanted or imagined she would be again. Dr. Portman does a needle biopsy of the lump, sucking out some of the tissue to analyze. When they finish they head out to the car to go get Lena from Patti's.

"Hey Blakee." 

"Yeah baby? What's up? Are you ok? Do you need something?" Gwen chuckles in response

"Cowboy calm down. I'm ok. I just wanted to say that I don't think we should tell anyone until after we get the results tomorrow." 

"Yeah I agree. There is no need to stress anyone out until we know."

They hold hands over the center console the whole way to Patti's house to get Lena. This has become a comfort thing they do when they are worried or stressed.  
.......................................  
Gwen and Blake both wake to Gwen's phone ringing. She looks at it and then looks at Blake taking his hand before she answers it. 

"Hello?...... yes this is Mrs. Shelton....." 

Blake sits up now pulling Gwen into his lap. He wraps his arms around her laying his head on her shoulder. 

"Ok thank you very much........bye bye." 

Gwen drops the phone on the bed in front of her. Just as she is about to turn and tell Blake, the door comes flying open and a certain princess comes flying in the room and onto the bed giggling. Blake and Gwen laugh seeing the carefree smile their daughter is wearing. 

"It morning mommy!"

"It is princess. You want some breakfast?" 

"YES! YES! YES!" 

"Ok sweet girl let's go get some." 

Gwen moves to get out of the bed and follow Lena down to the kitchen, but Blake grabs her arm. Gwen crawls back into his lap and places a long deep kiss on his lips.

"It was negative cowboy. I'm still cancer free." 

She gives him one last peck before climbing out of bed following their daughter.


	9. What Comes Next

"So Jen how are you feeling?" Dr. Park asks

"Well I have been having headaches. The baby keeps kicking right under my ribs. He is definitely Blake's child. Big and strong as an ox." 

"Where does it hurt exactly?"

"Right here under my rib on my right side."

"Hmm... what was your blood pressure today?" Dr. Park says more to himself than to anyone in the room. 

He flips through the chart before excusing himself to the hallway while he dials his phone.

"Is this normal?" Blake asks with a worried look on his face.

"No it's not." Jen says also wearing a worried look.

Gwen walks over to Jen taking her hand and squeezing it tight, letting her know she isn't alone in this. Blake follows Gwen's lead and walks over to the women, wrapping Gwen in his arms. The three of them stand there worried until the doctor comes back in. 

"Ok sorry about that folks. I needed to make some arrangements. So I think we have a problem here. I'm concerned you are developing pre-eclampsia. Your rib pain, high blood pressure and headaches has me worried for your health as well as for that of the baby's health." 

"So what does that mean?" Blake asks seeing that both women are in tears.

"Well that means you head over to the hospital from here. Jen you and the baby need to be monitored for a little while. I don't want to blind side you either. There is a chance we will need to deliver the baby today." 

"What? It's way to early! What will happen to the baby?" Gwen asks 

"We will likely need to take the baby to the NICU. If we find delivery is necessary we will you a steroid through your IV to help mature his lungs just a bit more. So I'm gonna go ahead and send you to the woman's hospital to get hooked up to some monitors so we can get a better picture of what's going on." 

The Doctor walked out of the room leaving three distraught adults alone while they wait for the nurse to let them know the hospital is ready for them. 

"Blake can you call Todd. I need him here." 

"Absolutely. I'll call Patti as well and let her know she will likely have the girls overnight." 

Blake takes out his phone and dials Todd first. He knows Jen is terrified and not having Todd here is making things way worse for her. 

"Hello?" Todd answers his phone.

"Hey Todd. Where are you man?" 

"I'm at home. Why? Is Jen ok?" 

"Todd I need you to meet us at the woman's hospital in like twenty minutes."

"What? What happened? Is Jen ok?" 

"Calm down, Jen is ok for now but it's a big possibility that they are going to have to deliver the baby today." 

"Is your baby ok? I'm putting my shoes on now."

"They haven't told us a whole lot other than Jen's blood pressure is way too high."

"Okay tell Jen I love her man and that I am on my way." 

"I will buddy." 

"Call me back if something happens and Blake take care of all three of them. They are our worlds." 

"I promise Todd. I'm gonna call Patti and have her keep the girls tonight. Is that ok with you?" 

"Yeah that's a good idea! Alright I'm in the car. I'll be there shortly." 

"Ok see you soon!" He hangs up the phone and places it in his pocket.

"Jen Todd loves you and he is on his way." 

"Thanks Blake." 

Blake then calls Pattie and informs her about what's going on and asks if it is ok if the girls sleep over, which of course it is. After that the trio is sent to the woman's hospital where Jen is hooked up to monitors right away. Five minutes after they get settled Todd comes in and Jen breaks completely down, which does something to her blood pressure and the baby as the nurse runs in and starts talking her down. 

"How are they doing? No one has told us anything since we got here?" Blake asks concerned for Jen and terrified for his son.

"The doctors are looking at your monitor strips now and should be in soon. I don't want to tell you something and it be wrong so it's better to wait for the doctors." 

Blake holds Gwen as she cries and Todd is in bed with Jen holding her. 

"I'm so sorry guys this isn't the way it's supposed to go." Jen says through her tears

"Jen don't you dare! Don't you dare blame yourself! This could have easily happened if I   
had been able to carry him myself. The important thing is that we are exactly where we are supposed to be for you guys to get the help you need."

The couples sit there and hold each other until the doctors finally come in. 

"Hi everyone so after watching the stripe for a few minutes the baby's heart is decelerating too many times in one minute for it to be safe for him to stay inside. We believe the safest option for everyone is to go ahead and have this baby in an emergency c-section. Is everyone on board?" 

"Yes" they all say in unison. 

"Ok so normally only one other person can be in the OR. However considering the circumstances I'm comfortable letting us bend the rules. Mom and dad you may come in. However, I need you to stay at the bassinet. Todd you may also come in we just need you to stay on the seat at Jen's head. Everyone understand?"

"Yep" they all answer.

"Great let's have a baby everyone!" Dr. Park says before heading out to get ready to bring Jackson Tollison Shelton into this world.   
\---------------------------------------------  
While Blake, Gwen, and Todd get their OR covers on they take Jen in to the OR to receive her spinal block. The anesthesiologist explains what will occur and the numbness she will feel while delivering the baby. He reminds her that she will feel pressure as they remove the baby so she doesn't panic when it seems like her insides are being pushed up to her chest.

Once the medication has been delivered they lay Jen on the gurney and lead her into the OR to transfer her to the operating table. As they are getting everything in place a nurse leads Todd, Blake, and Gwen into the room. Blake and Gwen let Jen know they are there as Todd sits down on the stool beside Jen. He places a kiss on her temple and let's her know everything will be okay. They didn't expect a c-section but Jen would do just about anything to see Blake and Gwen get the baby they hoped for.

Dr. Park has taken his place at the end of the operating table and walks Jen and the others through what will happen. 

"Okay so once I make the incision it will take us under 10 minutes to deliver your baby. Now since he is coming early he may have difficulty breathing at first but do not be alarmed. We have the pediatrician on call in here already and a team of nurses to assist her. You will feel pressure Jen when I begin to deliver the baby so just let me know if anything hurts aside from the pressure okay. Your anesthesiologist will remain right beside you monitoring your vitals and will let me know if anything were to be alarming. Okay...any questions? Alright...let's deliver a baby."

Gwen and Blake were just as nervous as Jen. They knew that at just 34 weeks there could be some complications but at least it wasn't as bad as being born at 26 weeks. Their baby could be fine or could need help breathing...they will just have to wait and see.

As the doctor makes the incision Todd sits by Jen reassuring her the whole time. Jen takes a deep breath when she hears the doctor tell her that she will feel the pressure now and it seems like her stomach is being pushed up to her throat. About 6 minutes later she can hear Gwen and Blake gasp....she just knows that the baby has been delivered but isn't breathing. Jen turns to Todd...

"Todd...babe...is he okay? Please tell me he is okay?"

"He's out Jen but he's not crying...just hang on okay. They are bringing him to the pediatrician."

Dr. Park let's Jen know he is closing up the incision and when he completes the closure he walks to her side.

"Okay Jen...he is out but he is having a bit of trouble breathing. They are going to give him oxygen to see if that helps but if not they may have to intubate."

Jen nods her head with tears in her eyes "please tell me that Blake and Gwen can see him?"

The doctor takes her hand "they are right behind the doctors and nurses...they are watching him right now.

Todd stays with Jen as they look on. Blake has his arm around Gwen and she is covering her mouth with her hand trying not to break down. In the background the baby's doctor can be heard rattling off instructions to the nurses.

"Baby is breathing on his own but the lungs do not appear to be staying open. Let's get him set up with a CPAP (continuous positive air pressure) to help keep his lungs open and get him into the NICU for monitoring."

Once they get the oxygen flowing into Jackson they finally hear some sounds from him. Little whimpers letting everyone know he is okay. Blake and Gwen hold onto one another as they thank the doctor after he let's them know what will be happening and that they will be able to visit with their baby as soon as he is settled in the NICU.

Jen's doctor then gets her all cleaned up and has her taken to the recovery wing. As she is being rolled away she catches Gwen's hand "he's going to be okay sis...I just know it. You and Blake go with your son...Todd will be with me."

"Jen...oh my god...thank you so much. We couldn't have done this without you...we will forever be in your debt."

Todd is by Jen's side the whole time she is in the recovery room. A couple of hours later they move her to a private room and the couple waits for Blake and Gwen to come in. There is a knock at the door and Todd tells them to come in. Blake and Gwen enter looking much calmer and at ease than they were in the operating room.

Todd speaks first "how is my nephew?"

Blake pulls Gwen into his side as he answers Todd "he's okay....they are going to keep him on the CPAP which will keep his lungs open but he is breathing on his own. They are also regulating his body temperature. We are able to touch him just not hold him yet."

"Oh thank God" Jen says from her bed.

"Jen...how are you feeling?" Gwen asks

"I am okay sis...they told me to expect pain after the block wears off completely but I am tough...I can do this. I am just glad the baby is okay."

Blake goes to Jen's bedside "Jen...I cannot thank you enough for the gift of my son. He may have to stay in the NICU for a couple of weeks but they say he will be okay. He is a fighter like his mama and auntie!"

Jen smiles and takes Blake's hand "Hey Blake...you are allowed to show emotion you know...Gwen won't think less of you.." 

Gwen joins Blake beside Jen's bed and tells her brother and his wife "so...you want to know what your nephew's name is? We never told you guys that we had decided on one after the gender reveal."

"Oh my God yes....it better be a good name...I didn't just go through this for a silly name Gwen" she teases.

"Tell her babe!"

Blake smiles at his wife then turns his attention to his brother and sister-in-law... "Okay well as soon as you are able to we will wheel you to the NICU to meet...Jackson Tollison Shelton!"

"He is so precious Jen...he has Blake's eyes..."

"Yeah but thank God he has your cute nose"

Jen smiles at her sister-in-law and Blake... "I am so happy for you guys...I am even more happy to know that I will be able to be in his life."

The couple thanks Jen for the thousandth time bringing a smile to everyone's face. Everything was going to be okay. Before long they would be able to bring Jackson home but until then the family could see him from outside the NICU. Their baby was so loved and before long he would be able to experience it first hand.


	10. Just like his Mom

The next morning after peeking in on their son Blake and Gwen make their way to Jen's room to get her. They want her to be able to see Jackson. Gwen knows that, even though she knew the process, that it would still be hard on her. Carrying a baby, and giving birth to him only to not take him home has to be really hard. They knock on Jen's door hearing the couple yell "come in".

"Sis! How is Jackson?" Jen asks enthusiastically. 

"He is good! We peeked in on him on the way to come get you. You can get out of bed right?" Gwen asks.

"Yeah but I think that today should be about you and Blake bonding with your son. We have his whole life to spoil him. I think today should just be you guys and him. I already talked to mom and dad about it and although they were sad, mom agreed. This is an important bonding time."

"Jen I don't even know what to say. You are a true angel. Thank you so much!" Blake says in awe of the total selfless attitude of his sister-in-law has.

They exchange hugs and Blake and Gwen make their way to the NICU to see their son. 

"Do you think we will get to hold him today?" 

"I don't know sunshine. Depends on how he is doing I guess. I would be scared to with that thing on his face. I would be scared I would bump it and he wouldn't be able to breath." 

"I don't care. I want to hold him. I want him to know he is safe and loved. Him laying there breaks my heart." 

They reach the door to the NICU and walk to the sinks, already knowing the routine. Once they enter the NICU, they head straight to their son's room. They walk up to his bed just staring at their little miracle. 

"Are you guys mom and dad?" The nurse asks as she comes up to Jackson's bed.

"Yes. I'm Blake and this is my wife Gwen."

"I'm Stacie one of the NICU nurses. I've been taking care of Jackson." 

"How is he?" Gwen asks worry lacing her voice. 

"He is doing really well. He is still on the CPAP and the warmer. We gave him another dose of steroids to help his lungs a little more." 

"How long will he be on the CPAP?" Blake asks.

"Well it's hard to say. It all depends on his lungs. The doctor will probably look to start weening him off in a few days. It's better to do these steps when they are ready rather than trying to push them." 

"I hate him laying there in this bed. He should be in my arms." Gwen says turning into Blake burying her face in his chest not wanting to show the nurse how upset she is.

"He doesn't have to stay in there. In fact we were wanting to get you guys to do some kangaroo care with him. It works wonders for babies struggling to maintain their body temperatures." 

"Kanga- what?" Blake asks.

"Kangaroo care. We would give you a gown and when you're holding him you guys take your shirts off. This allows us to lay him skin to skin with you. This will actually keep his body temperature where it should be better than our warmers." 

"We can hold him with his CPAP on? He won't stop breathing or anything?" Gwen asks

"You absolutely can. We hold babies a lot less stable than Jackson is. I'm telling you he is doing really well." 

"I want to hold him!" Gwen says needing to feel him in her arms. 

The nurse grabs a gown for Gwen and steps out while she removes her shirt replacing it with the gown. When the nurse comes back she brings a crocheted blue and white baby blanket. She instructs Gwen to pull the rocking chair next to his bed. Of course Blake doesn't let her move it, he jumps in before she can do it. Gwen sits down and the nurse picks Jackson up. The nurse places Jackson on Gwen's chest, being aware of where all the tubes are, and places the blanket on top of him. The minute Jackson was on Gwen's chest, tears started rolling down her cheeks. She is blown away bey the unconditional love she immediately feels for this tiny human. Once they are settled the nurse leaves instructing them to hit their call bell when Gwen was done holding him, which in Gwen's head would be never. Blake has his phone out snapping pictures of her holding Jackson. He pulls the other chair next to them. 

"Look at him Blake. He is so perfect." Gwen says staring down at her son.

"He really is. I can't believe he is here. I can't believe we have a baby together. He is our miracle." 

"Yeah he really is." 

Gwen held him until the doctors came around right before lunch. Blake was able to pull her away long enough for them to get food. They weren't gone long and when they got back to their miracle it was Blake's turn to do skin to skin with their son. Gwen could tell Blake was nervous he had never been around babies other than his niece and nephew. The nurse places Jackson on Blake's chest. At first Jackson was restless and couldn't get comfortable. 

"Gwen what am I doing wrong? I don't think he likes me." 

"Blake that's not true! You're his dad. You just need to relax." 

"I don't want to break him or mess up any of these tubes." 

Gwen placed her hand on his cheeks making him meet her gaze.

"Cowboy calm down! Relax, your not going to break him, ok!" 

"He is so little." 

"Yeah he is but you aren't gonna hurt him. Blake you're his dad. He loves you." 

"What if I'm not good enough for him."

"Blake you're already an amazing dad to Lena. You are everything to that little girl and I know it will be the same with Jackson." 

"Thanks sunshine." 

"Always cowboy." Gwen says bending over first planting a kiss on his lips and then placing one on her baby boys head. 

After Gwen reassures him, Blake relaxed and Jackson settled in just as Gwen said he would. When the nurse came in she needed Jackson in his bed so she could check him out, so Blake and Gwen took the time to grab a fast dinner. When they came back Gwen took Jackson. The bond she felt with Jackson was such a relief to her. The fear of not bounding with him had completely gone. Around ten o'clock that night Blake decided it was time to try to get Gwen to go home to sleep. 

"Gwen"

"Yeah Blakee?" 

"I think we need to start getting ready to go home to sleep." 

"What? We can't leave him here alone!" 

"Gwen we have to go get some sleep and showers." 

"I can sleep here." Gwen refutes tears welling into her eyes.

"I know this is hard Gwen. We didn't expect him to be here, but you have to take care of yourself so you are ok to take care of him. We will get up first thing in the morning and come straight here to him." Blake tries to convince her to go home while pressing the call bell to get the nurse to place him back in his bed. 

"You guys heading home for the night?" Stacie asks as she moves to put Jackson back to bed. 

"Yeah I think so." 

As soon as Stacie lifts Jackson off Gwen's chest he starts crying. Blake watches as Gwen rubs his head trying to calm him down. It's not until she gets him settled that she breaks down walking straight into Blake's arms. He holds her reassuring her that he will be ok and they will be back first thing in the morning. As they walk out of the hospital holding hands as tears continue to fall down Gwen's face. 

"Gwen baby, you're breaking my heart. He is gonna be ok. You have to take care of yourself to be able to take care of him. You can't stay her twenty-four seven for the next who knows how many weeks." 

"I know babe. He was so upset when the nurse took him. He didn't understand. All he wanted was me, his mommy." 

"Come here baby." He took her in his arms again. "I know these next few weeks are gonna be hard but we have to be strong for him. We have to let him know he has to keep getting stronger so he can come home with us." 

"I love you Blake." Gwen says planting a huge kiss on his lips. Blake wasn't expecting this kiss but boy was it welcomed. When they finally broke apart they were both breathless and flushed. 

"I love you too Gwen."  
.............. ......................................  
Blake wakes the next morning to the sound of the shower going. He rolled over to look at the clock. It's 6:30 am. Gwen is the farthest thing from a morning person so for her to be up this early is just crazy. When she comes back into the room in just a towel, Blake's jaw drops. 

"I was gonna complain about the time but how can I complain when you look like that?" Blake tells her.

"Morning to you too." She says walking over to the bed and pecking him on the lips.

"Now get up and get a shower. Our son is waiting for us! I'm gonna call mom and check on Lena. I hope she is doing ok being away from us for so long." 

"She is being spoiled by Nono and Nona, I'm sure she is fine. Plus she had Stella to play with. Can you ask your mom to bring her today though. I miss her." 

"I was already planning to. I miss her like crazy. We haven't been away from her this much since we found her." 

Gwen called and touched based with her mom on how Lena is. Patti told her that Lena had been up crying most of last night for them. Gwen's heart instantly breaks. Here they were so focused on their son that they left their other baby without seeing her for two days. Gwen feels like a bad mom. It had taken so long for them to win her trust. The last thing they want to do is loose that trust. 

"Is your mom gonna bring her?" 

"Blake we screwed up." 

"What?" 

"Mom was up all night with her. She cried for us all night." 

"Shit. I guess we should bring her home tonight with us."

"Yeah we really should. That means we have to leave sooner tonight don't we?" 

"Probably sunshine. I'm sorry this is the way it has to be but he will come home soon." 

"I know. I'll be ok. Lena needs us. I'm her mommy too. I can't wait for Jackson to come home with us." 

"Me too baby, me too."   
.................................................  
Gwen and Blake walked into Jen's room to find her dressed and finalizing her discharge. 

"Going home already?" Blake asks 

"Blake! Sis! Yeah I'm going home today!" Jen says 

"How is our nephew doing?" Todd asks 

"He was doing so good yesterday!" Gwen tells them.

"Did you get to hold him?" Jen asks 

"Yeah I think I held him seventy-five percent of the day." Gwen laughs 

"I don't blame you. It's hard to put them down at first." Jen says

"You guys ready to see him and hold the peanut?" Blake asks 

"Yes!" Both Jen and Todd say

Together the two couples make their way to the NICU to see their little miracle. Gwen and Blake show Todd and Jen the routine before entering the NICU. When they enter Jackson's room Jen hangs back more than Gwen would have thought. The men are next to Jackson talking about father and son things. 

"Hey Jen are you ok?" Gwen asks 

"Yeah I'm good!"

"Hey it's me. You don't have to pretend to be ok for me."

"I don't know how close I can get to him. I'm worried that I'm gonna have issues with letting him go. I'm worried the connection is gonna be to o strong right now."

"Jen you're allowed to have those feelings. I know your are going to have a special bond with him and that's ok. He grew inside you. I want you to hold him. I don't want you having regrets." 

"Jen you alright honey?" Todd asks noticing his wife struggling.

"I'm ok babe." 

"She is scared to hold him. I told her she has every right to have a special connection with him." 

"Honey remember what we said. We are still gonna have a big role in his life. We are gonna see him all the time." Todd says wrapping his wife in his arms and it was as if he was pulling all the pieces, she felt she was in, back together. 

"Now I agree with Gwen you need to hold him. You're gonna regret it later if you don't."

"Ok I'll hold him."

About that time the nurse came in ready to update everyone and see if anyone wanted to hold him.

"Hi mom and dad. Little Jackson is doing great. We are gonna give him one more dose of steroids this morning and then this afternoon we would like to try taking him off CPAP." The nurse informed them. 

"Really? Is he ready for that? Nurse Stacie said it would be a few days." Gwen asks

"He is making progress faster than we thought he would. He is starting to push against the CPAP, which is a big indicator that he is ready to come off of it." 

"Oh my gosh that is great news!" Gwen says falling into Blake's arms 

"Thank goodness." Jen says "can I hold him?" She asks 

"Mom, dad, is that ok?" The nurse asks

"Of course! This is his auntie and uncle." Blake tells the nurse.

The nurse has Jen sit in the rocking chair and places Jackson on her chest. Jen looks at him laying there on her chest. She is surprised she doesn't feel that mother child connection with him. Yes she feels a bigger love toward him than just an aunt would, but is not a feeling of "he is mine". She is beyond relieved. 

"Gwen he is such a blessing. A little miracle. His blue eyes are just like his dad's. I'm so happy for you guys!" 

Jen and Todd both hold him and both are amazed at this tiny miracle. Before lunch they leave so Jen can shower and rest. Blake and Gwen spend the afternoon as they had the day before, holding Jackson. In the late afternoon the doctors come in and remove him from the CPAP and monitor him closely for the following few hours. Gwen and Blake were overwhelmed when the doctors told them that he was doing really well on his own and that they are going to leave him off the CPAP. The nurse told them however that this doesn't mean he gets to go home. He is still having a hard time maintaining his body temperature and needs to show he could eat on his own as most NICU babies have a hard time at first. So at this point it's just a waiting game for his little body to mature.   
..............................................................................  
That night around dinner Patti texts Gwen and tells her they are walking in. They make their way out of the NICU to meet them and go have dinner in the cafeteria. Patti had brought food for all of them. The minute that Lena sees Gwen and Blake she begins running to them. 

"Mommy! Daddy!" Lena yelled while she ran to them.

"Princess! I missed you so much!" Blake said as Lena ran straight into his arms. 

"Lena baby! Mommy missed you!" Gwen said wrapping her arms around Blake and Lena. 

"I miss you! I cry cause I miss you." 

"That's ok princess. How about mommy and daddy take you home tonight to sleep?" Gwen asks.

"YES PEASE MOMMY!" 

"We can do that baby girl!" Blake says 

After they hug Lena a little more the five of them made their way to the cafeteria to eat. After they eat Gwen takes Patti and Dennis into the NICU to meet Jackson. Around eight o'clock that night everyone walked out of the hospital. They all exchange hugs and Gwen and Blake take Lena home with them for the night.   
\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Blake and Gwen arrived at the hospital on day number 10 of little Jackson’s stay and were greeted by the doctor immediately. The look of sheer concern on their faces could not go unnoticed by their doc.

 

“Good morning folks…I can tell by the looks on your faces that you are concerned by my presence this morning, but there is no need for alarm…I come to you with good news. Jackson has continued breathing on his own strongly and his suckling and swallowing is getting better. If he continues to improve the next couple of days I see no reason why he can’t go home by the weekend.”

 

Blake looked to Gwen and placed a kiss on her temple “see baby; I told you everything would work out. Our son is a fighter just like his mama!”

 

Gwen looked up to Blake smiling and then turned back to the doctor “thank you doctor for all of your help and the great news. Is it okay if we go in to see our son now?”

 

“Oh of course ma’am; the shift change has already occurred so you are free to go in. Since he is no longer on the CPAP it will be easier for you to hold him. We will still do the kanga care technique just to keep his temp regulated and I recommend it at home too. It also helps with bonding. You all enjoy your day with your son. He is a tough little guy!”

 

Blake shook the doctor’s hand and thanked him again for his help with their son. They would be able to bring him home in a few days. Their son…was coming home soon. 

 

As Blake and Gwen entered the NICU they made their way to Jackson and Nurse Stacie greeted them “Good morning Gwen…Good morning Blake. Here to see your little man Jackson huh”; more a statement than a question.

 

Stacie picked little Jackson up and handed him to Gwen who was sitting in the rocking chair nearby. She had already prepared for her son so when he was handed to her they were skin to skin just as usual. Gwen felt so close to her baby this way; it helped her feel more connected to him. Blake stood nearby just watching his wife with their son. He thought Gwen was beautiful before but he knew now that this was the most beautiful version of Gwen he had ever seen.

 

Blake got his turn with Jackson and the whole time he held his son he sang to him. Apparently Jackson liked soft country love songs. His favorite seemed to be the one Blake wrote for Gwen…”God Gave Me You”. Blake sang that one to him every night before the couple left and today was no different. 

 

When Jackson was placed safely back into his bassinet Blake and Gwen said their goodbyes and told their little boy they would be back tomorrow. The days couldn’t go by fast enough. They were more than ready to take Jackson home and soon enough they would.

\-------------------------------------------------------------

Four days later the couple made their way to the NICU just as they did every day since their son was born. When they arrived they got nervous because they didn’t see Jackson right away. Suddenly their favorite nurse Stacie came from the back of the unit holding little Jackson. Gwen had left the outfit they had chosen for his trip home a couple of days ago since they were told he would be going home soon. When Stacie saw them she turned Jackson toward them so they could see him. Gwen brought her hand to her mouth and gasped. There their son was dressed in his blue onesie with little elephants on it with his little brown gray pants matching the animal’s color and some blue socks on his tiny little feet.

 

“Babe do you think this means what I think it means” she asked turning to Blake.

 

He placed a kiss on her forehead “yeah baby I think it does…I think we finally get to bring him home.”

 

When they approached Stacie she greeted them with a big smile “Good morning…I hope your car seat is ready in your vehicle because your son has been cleared by the doctor to go home today!”

 

She handed Jackson to Gwen and said “Congratulations to you both! You have a strong fighter on your hands. He has progressed beautifully. If you have any problems with him latching on to the bottle please don’t hesitate to call your pediatrician. If you want to wait right here with Jackson the doctor will come in to go over his release and you will be on your way!”

 

As the doctor came in a few moments later he greeted Gwen and Blake “Good morning to you both…are you excited for today?”

 

Blake spoke up first because Gwen was engrossed in their son “we are very excited…we have been waiting for this day for a long time!” 

 

“Okay, so Jackson is breathing well on his own…his lungs are developing as need be and he is able to regulate his own temperature now. I would still recommend using the kangaroo technique at home as I mentioned. It will help you continue to bond with your son and it will feel normal to him since it has been part of his routine here. Now I know you will be using breast milk and formula so you will have to just experiment with the formula, although I highly recommend the Enfamil with Lipil formula. Other than that we have already discussed all of the normal care necessary for your baby. I will want to see him in one week in my office. Here is my card; just call and make an appointment so I can monitor his progress. Other than that….Congratulations on a strong, healthy baby boy. I will see you all in a week.”

 

The doctor shakes both Gwen and Blake’s hands and exits the NICU to continue his rounds. Stacie comes back over to the couple and gives them the discharge papers will all of the care advice on it “this is the best part of my job! Best of luck to you both and congratulations again!”

 

Gwen hugs the nurse and moves to let Blake thank her as well. Blake puts his arm around Gwen and says “let’s get out of here. I already called your Mom and told her we would swing by to get Lena on the way home.”

 

The couple headed to their car with Jackson in Gwen’s arms. When they got there they placed him in his fancy new rear-facing car seat. Gwen had ensured he was snuggly in place and sat in the seat next to him while Blake went around to the driver’s seat. He drove slower than usual on the way to Patti’s to pick up Lena and Gwen noticed.

 

“Umm babe? Why are you driving so slowly?”

 

“Am I?” he replied looking at his speedometer “well I am but hey we have precious cargo on board!”

 

As they pull into Patti’s driveway Blake gets out to get Lena while Gwen waits in the car. He hugs Patti at the door as Lena clings to his legs. He picks his daughter up and heads to the car and puts her in her car seat in the back with Gwen and the baby.

 

“Mommy Jackson is coming home?” she asked

 

“Yeah princess…he is right here beside me. You will be able to see him as soon as we get home okay? He is asleep right now.”

 

“Okay Mommy. I want to play with him.”

 

“Okay baby girl but remember you have to be gentle because he is still super little.”

 

“Okay mommy…I be careful!”

 

Blake made his way to their home and pulled the car into the garage. He got out of the car and helped Gwen get out as soon as he had Lena out of her car seat. Once Gwen was out Lena ran around to hug her mom. Gwen picked up her daughter while Blake got Jackson out of the car; car seat and all. They made their way into the house and went straight to the living room because they knew how excited Lena was to see her brother since she couldn’t see him at the hospital.

 

“Lena baby why don’t you sit over here next to your mama and I will hand Jackson to her so you can meet your brother.”

 

Gwen sat in the middle of the couch and Lena right beside her. Blake carefully took Jackson out of his car seat and placed the sleeping baby in Gwen’s arms.

 

“Lena” he said quietly “meet your baby brother…Jackson Tollison.”

 

She reached her hand straight to his face and Gwen had to stop her “princess make sure you don’t touch his eyes okay. Just gently touch his cheeks or the side of his head okay. Remember to be nice and gently because he is so little and still growing.”

 

“Jackson grows like me mommy?”

 

“Yes baby…he will grow just like you…but you are going to be bigger than him for a long time because you are older than him. Are you going to help me take care of him?”

 

“Yes mommy I wanna help!”

 

Blake picked up Lena from the couch “you are going to be a great big sister you know that princess? Jackson is lucky to have you!”

 

“Thank you Daddy…I love Jackson!”

 

“So do we princess” Blake replied.

 

Blake left his wife and daughter to relax on the couch while he put the car seat by the front door just in case they need to go out with the baby. He got things situated in the nursery and made sure the cradle was set up in their room in case of late night feedings or if Jackson was having trouble sleeping….little did he know that cradle would be coming in handy.

 

The family spent the afternoon watching movies and entertaining their new bundle of joy. When it was time for bed Blake gave Lena her bath and read her a bed time story; this one about being a big sister. Once she was tucked into bed he went to help Gwen put Jackson in his crib. He sang his song to his son as he drifted off to sleep. Gwen and Blake placed kisses on their son’s forehead and made their way to their room for the evening. Both of them thinking they were prepared for what obstacles would come next.

 

Blake leaned to Gwen and kissed her softly, slowly “sunshine…seeing you with our son has to be the most beautiful thing ever. You are always beautiful and I didn’t think it was possible for you to be more beautiful than before until I saw you with our son. I love you baby…ALWAYS!”

 

“Aww babe…thank you…and might I add how hot fatherhood is on you” she exclaimed claiming his lips once more before laying on his chest…her absolute favorite spot “I love you Blake…ALWAYS” she added as the couple faded off to sleep…for now!


	11. Tension In the Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Are you guys still enjoying this or should we think about wrapping up sooner?

Just when Blake and Gwen seem to fall asleep their is a cry that can be heard over the baby monitor.  Gwen stirs first and looks at her phone to check the time.  It reads 10:15 and she sighs thinking to herself that there is no way they were only asleep for 15 minutes.  As she gets up out of the bed Blake stirs.

"Everything okay baby?"

"Jackson is crying...I've got it this time babe go back to sleep."

"No baby I will come in with you that way if he is hungry I can stay with him while you run down to get his bottle."

They make their way to the nursery and Jackson is wailing.  They haven't heard him cry like this yet but then again he is still adjusting to being out of the hospital without nurses checking on him every thirty minutes so they expected an adjustment time.  Gwen reaches him first and picks him up bouncing and swaying as she tries to calm him but it isn't working.  She takes him to the changing table and asks Blake to assist her in changing his diaper.

"Babe can you grab me the wipes and a clean diaper please?"

Blake leans under the changing table and grabs the items as Gwen start to get Jackson out of his pajamas.  She is changing his diaper which is a little wet but not bad but their little guy is still upset.

Blake turns to Gwen as he reaches to put the wipes away "baby why don't you go get him a bottle while I hold him and we can see if he is hungry."

Gwen makes her way downstairs and warms up a bottle while Blake sits in the rocking chair to try to calm their son.  He is a little calmed down when Gwen returns and so Blake stands and lets his wife sit down and get situated to feed Jackson.  He takes the bottle and eats all 4 ounces fairly quickly so Gwen lifts him to her shoulder to burp him.  He lets out a loud burp and she and Blake both laugh..."oh my god he is so you babe" she says smiling at her husband.  But the quiet stops moments later when he starts crying again.  Gwen doesn't understand what is wrong.  He has a clean diaper, he is fed, and he has clean clothes on but nothing she is doing is helping.

Blake offers to try to help "sunshine let me take him and see if I can help please."  He helps Gwen up from the chair and as he goes to sit in it he removes his t-shirt he was sleeping in.  He takes their son and lays him on his chest as he rocks in the chair.  Within a few moments Jackson is sound asleep on Blake's chest.

Quietly Gwen lifts Jackson from Blake's chest and lays him in his crib "oh thank you babe you did it...now let's go back to bed...it has been a long day already and we will be up again soon with him to feed.  Little did Gwen know that they would be up hourly but not to feed every time.  

Jackson was having a rough night adjusting to his new surroundings so he was waking frequently crying to let his mom and dad know he was not a happy camper.  Every time they went to him they changed him if it was needed, they would offer a bottle but he didn't always want it and they would try to rock him back to sleep.  For some reason Jackson would not fall asleep for Gwen but the minute Blake took him and laid him on his bare chest with Jackson out of his pajamas, just in his diaper, he would loll off to sleep in a matter of minutes.

The last time this occurred at about 3 o'clock in the morning Gwen had reached her breaking point.  She had left the room as soon as Jackson fell asleep and went to check on Lena.  Lena stirred when she felt Gwen sit on the end of her bed.

"Mommy is Jackson okay?  He keep crying."

"He is just getting used to his new bed baby.  Go back to sleep.  Mommy was just making sure you were okay."

"I'm okay mommy but I am sweepy!  Jackson needs sweep too!"

"Daddy is getting him to sleep baby.  Now you rest okay...mommy loves you."

"I love you too mommy...night!"

Gwen leans down and gives Lena a kiss on her forehead and moves the hair out of her eyes "goodnight my princess."

Gwen goes to the master bedroom and sits on the bed with her knees curled up into her chest sobbing.  Blake comes in and finds her this way and walks to the bed and cuddles in beside her.

"Baby what's wrong?  Why are you crying darlin'?"

"Blake he won't fall asleep for me.  I am trying everything even the kanga care like they said but nothing; but the minute you do it he is out like a light.  What am I doing wrong?"

"Gwen darlin' you aren't doing anything wrong.  Maybe he just wants daddy tonight.  I don't know, but don't let it bother you.  We are a team and he will need both of us all of the time it just depends on the situation.  Besides maybe he is a little cold tonight and I put off more body heat so it is warmer for him.  Whatever it is don't worry it will be okay.  Now try to get some rest.  We haven't stayed asleep for more than 3o minutes at a a time and morning is creeping up on us" Blake says placing a kiss on her temple.

"Okay cowboy...I love you babe!  Thank you for helping!"

"Always darlin'.  I love you too."

As Blake lays there waiting for his wife to fall asleep he prays that things with Jackson will smooth out soon because he knows how hard Gwen is on herself and he doesn't ever want her to think she isn't good enough.  After a few moments he notices her breathing even out so he closes his eyes too in the hopes he can get a bit of sleep as well.  Unfortunately it isn't in the cards and they are both up again within 30 minutes trying to soothe their colicky baby.  This is going to be a long, long first night home.  
                                                      ------------------------------------------  
Gwen and Blake we're both exhausted from being up with Jackson. They both were in need of coffee. Lena had come running in their room about 20 minutes ago yelling "its wake up time!". Of course this woke Jackson up which meant he was ready to eat. Gwen went to fix a bottle of the frozen breast milk Jen has been bringing over. Blake fixes the coffee and Lena's breakfast. Gwen takes Jackson and Lena in the living room turning Disney on for Lena and giving Jackson his bottle. Blake brings a cup of coffee in for Gwen and Lena a bowl of Cheerios. He falls to the couch next to Gwen and she lays her head on his chest. 

"Mommy I don't want Os I want sumfing else." 

"Lena honey mommy is really tired and feeding Jackson, just eat the Cheerios this morning and tomorrow we will have something else." 

"Noooooooooooo I want sumfing else!" She whines 

"Lena I said no. Now please be a good girl and eat your Cheerios and watch tv." 

Lena looked directly at Gwen and threw the bowl of Cheerios all over the floor. 

"Lena no. No way. Blake can you help with her or take Jackson?" 

"Lena pick all of these up right now." Blake says sternly 

"No" she says looking at the Cheerios 

"Excuse me. You don't tell daddy no! Now pick them up." He says raising his voice now. 

"No" Lena says breaking out in tears. 

"Ok fine then you can go straight to time out." Blake's blood is boiling. Lena has never acted like this before. Blake grabs her hand and takes her toward the steps, but she stops and goes limp crying full out. So Blake picks her up as she is kicking and screaming and puts her on the step. 

"Your not being a good girl and now you will sit her until you calm down and are ready to pick up the Cheerios." Blake says sternly walking back over to the couch next to Gwen and Jackson.

"She has never acted like that. Like what the heck." 

"It could be jealousy. Plus, before, we probably would have gotten her something else." 

"Oh so her attitude is my fault?" 

"What? No that's not what I said!"

"Really cause it sounded like it to me. I'm sorry that I'm not a good mom and I can't handle everything." Gwen gets up and takes Jackson up to their room slamming the door shut. 

Blake is left sitting on the couch stunned, not even knowing what to do. Lena is on the steps crying her eye out and yelling "daddy....daddy" in between sobs. 

"Lena come here baby." Blake instructs and she gets up running to him. 

Blake pulls her into his lap and she buries her head in his chest. "Just like her mother does" he thinks to himself sighing. They knew it was gonna be hard but the lack of sleep is getting to them. 

"Daddy you and mommy are fighting. I'm scared." She said through tears.

"It's ok baby mommy is just tired and upset with daddy but we will figure it out ok?"

"Ok. I want mommy." 

"You can go up to her. I'll clean your Cheerios up." 

"No I help first. Then I go to mommy. I'm sorry daddy." 

"It's ok sweetheart. Just next time I need you to listen to mommy and daddy ok?"

Blake and Lena clean up the Cheerios and Lena goes upstairs to find Gwen. She walks up to their door. 

"Mommy?" 

"I'm in here baby. You can come in just open the door." 

Lena runs to the bed and Gwen helps her up. Jackson is lying beside Gwen and Lena looks at him before turning to Gwen. 

"Mommy I sorry." 

"Aww baby it's ok. I just need you to listen to mommy. We can't always get what we want baby. Mommy loves you. You know that right?" 

"I know. I love you too mommy." Lena leans in and kisses Gwen before turning her attention to Jackson. 

"Mommy I love my brother." 

"That makes mommy really happy to hear that." Gwen tells her sitting up and pulling Lena into her lap. "Do you want to help mommy change his diaper and get him dressed?" 

"Yeah!" 

Gwen has Lena get a wipe out for her and has her help secure the clean diaper in place. Gwen also lets Lena help pick out what to dress Jackson in, giving her two options and letting her pick which one. 

"Mommy?" 

"Yeah baby?" 

"You and daddy fight." She says looking down.

"Yeah baby we did." Gwen is ashamed of letting that fight happened in front of Lena. 

She has enough going on in her life right now. She sure doesn't need to have the fear of her parents fighting too. If Gwen is really honest with herself, she over reacted big time. She is so tired and it's easy to snap but that doesn't excuse picking a fight with Blake. 

"Lena baby. Can you go downstairs and have daddy put on something on the tv you want to watch and tell him mommy wants to talk to him?" 

"Yes mommy. You and daddy not gonna fight right?" 

"No baby. No more fighting." Gwen reassures her kissing her head before she runs down the steps. 

Gwen hears Blake coming up the steps and he stops in the doorway leaning against the frame. 

"Hey." Gwen says.

"Hey. Listen Gwen, I didn't mean to make it sound like it was your fault that Lena was acting out. It's just as much my fault. I spoil her." 

"We both spoil her." 

"I always feel bad because of how her life started out but that's not really helping her." 

"I do the same thing. I think we both have to put up a united front from now on and not give into everything she wants." 

"Yeah I agree." 

"I'm sorry Blake. I hate fighting with you, I'm just so tired and I just snapped. It's no excuse but I really am sorry Blake." Tears fall down her cheeks

Blake now walks into the room and sits on the bed next to her, pulling her into him.   
He rubs her back until he can feel her calm and relax into him. 

"I love you Gwen. Always." 

"I love you too Blake. Always." 

"Why don't I take Jackson down stairs with Lena and you nap for an hour or so." 

"Yes please! And then I'll come down with them and you can come up and nap." 

"Sounds perfect sweetheart." He places a kiss on her lips before taking Jackson from beside her and leave her to sleep some.


	12. Family Time?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We hope you are still enjoying the story. Comments are like candy and we both love candy! Thank you for your continued support!

Gwen wasn't looking forward to taking a three and a half month old and a four year old on a crowded plane. Thankfully they fly first class now so they had the space to accommodate an energetic four year old. They had decided that they would just hold Jackson the whole flight rather than dealing with a car seat. They made it through the security check point ok. Blake was handling Lena and Gwen had Jackson. Gwen had a bottle ready for Jackson for take off and landing. She had read an article about flying with infants and had gotten that tip plus the reminder of things to keep Lena entertained for it. Take off had gone better than they had expected. Lena was used to flying and luckily Jackson had fallen asleep drinking his bottle. 

"Daddy? Can we eat at mawmaw's?"

"I think so. I think mamaw is making dinner." 

"Hmmm I wike mamaw's food!"

"Me too princess, me too!" 

"Hey Blakee can you take Jackson for a little? My arm is falling asleep." Gwen asks 

"Of course sunshine. Hand him here." 

Gwen passes Jackson to Blake and luckily he stayed asleep. It wasn't until landing that he woke up and began crying. They did their best to soothe him but he was not happy. When they exited the plane Gwen took him to the bathroom to change his diaper, however this doesn't solve his problem. Gwen bounces him around rocking him, basically trying anything she could to soothe him, but nothing seems to help. He had refused a pacifier up until now but Gwen had brought some just in case and that seemed to help him settle down as well as his favorite bunny blanket. They made their way to get their bags and headed out to the pickup zone to find Luke. When they got out to the sidewalk they heard the beep of the horn and saw Luke getting out to help Blake get the bags and car seats in the car. 

"Uncle Luke!!!" Lane yelled running to Luke who swooped her up swinging her around. This of course made her laugh and giggle. 

"Nae!! How's my favorite little girl?" 

"I good. I missed you uncle Luke." 

"I missed you to Nae. A lot!" He says tickling her once again. 

"Thanks so much for picking us up man." Blake said shaking Luke's hand and side hugging him as to not disturb Jackson. 

"No problem man. Anytime. Gwen it's good to see you. You look beautiful as always." He says giving Gwen a hug. 

"It's great to see you as well. No Caroline?"

"No she is working on wedding plans with her mom. Now let me see the little peanut." He says looking to Jackson.

"Wow he really does look like Blake. I'm sorry." Luke said with the most serious face his could muster. 

"You know what Luke, Fuck off." Both men just laugh

"Blake! Little ears!"

"Oh snap sorry." 

They finish loading the car and make their way to the ranch.   
....................................................  
Blake and Gwen had gotten to the ranch around 2 that afternoon and decided a short nap would be better than no nap for the kids. After getting a cranky Lena down and a fussy Jackson asleep, Blake poured Gwen some wine and grabbed a beer out of the fridge for himself. They settled out on one of the big lounge seats on the porch. Gwen was sitting on Blake's lap nestled into his chest. 

"This is the best Blakee." 

"I love these moments too." 

"I love our kids but it's nice having moments that are just the two of us." 

"I couldn't agree more. I felt kinda guilty feeling that way, so I'm glad you feel that way to." 

Gwen looks up at Blake and their lips meet. Both get lost in each other. Their breathing becoming ragged as Gwen moves to straddle his lap. She starts grinding down on him. They both are consumed in the other until Gwen hears that cry from the monitor on the side table. It's the cry of their son. This cry worries Gwen as its different from his normal cry. Gwen jumps up to rush to the nursery. When Gwen makes it to the door of the nursery she sees its already open. She looks in and sees Lena standing next to his crib. She has her arm through the rails giving her favorite teddy bear to Jackson. 

"Jackson it's ok. Don't cry. I know dis place is new but don't be scared. It's a good place. Mommy and daddy are down stairs and I'm right here. Take my teddy bear and go back to seep. I lay on the floor right here, ok." Lena says to her baby brother

Gwen's heart swells seeing the love Lena has for her baby brother. She gave her favorite teddy to him so he wouldn't be so scared. The craziest part is Jackson grabs the bear pulling it to his face and stops crying. Both kids settle back down and are asleep with in a few minutes.   
.......................................  
Blake rings the doorbell holding Lena in his arms while Jackson is in his car seat sitting beside him. Dot opens the door and Lena yells "MAMAW!!!!!". Blake can see the tears form in his mom's eyes at Lena's pure excitement to her grandmother. 

"Lena baby! Come here and see mamaw!" Lena instantly reaches for Dot leaving Blake's arms 

"Mamaw I miss you. I love you to the moon and back!" If Dot wasn't already a melted puddle she sure was now.

When Blake was little, Dot used to tell him that every time she put him to bed. Hearing Lena say it, fills her heart knowing Blake carried that into raising his children. 

"And I love you to the moon and back too sweet girl!"

"I got my brother mamaw look!" Lena says excitedly pointing to Jackson.

"You did bring you brother! Is it ok if mamaw holds Jackson?" Dot asks not want to cause an uproar knowing how hard it can be to accept new siblings. 

"Yes Jackson would like that! He loves you too!" Lena says proudly

"Your a great big sister. You know that?" Dot asks putting Lena down. 

Lena just smiles up at her grandma. 

"Mom let's move into the living room. There is more room in there plus we can all sit down." Blake tells her.

"Makin' me wait to hold my grandson. Psh I see how it is." Dot joked with a smile on her face. 

Once in the living room Blake took Jackson out of his car seat and handed him to his mom. 

"He is so little to be almost four months old. Those FaceTime calls you made from the hospital made him seem bigger. There was nothing little about Blake when he was this age or at any age for that matter." 

"Still isn't." Blake says grinning at Gwen.

"Blake!!! Oh my gosh!" Gwen yells 

"Blake Shelton!" Dot scolds

"Fuck daddy!" Lena says 

The color drains from Gwen's face. 

"Did she says what I think she did?"

"BLAKE!!!! I told you this would happen! Seriously of all the words you had to say that in front of her!" Gwen yelled

"I should have known that you were where she heard it! You're a father Blake I raised you better than this!" Dot scolds

"Lena baby that's not a nice word we don't say that anymore, ok?" 

"Fuck is not nice?" Gwen cringes as she says it again but tries to maintain composure as she knows Lena needs to understand to know not to say it again.

"No baby it's not. Don't say that anymore." 

"Ok mommy I won't say that anymore." Lena says seeming to understand and moving on.  
........................................................  
Dot had yet to put Jackson down when Endy got there an hour later on time for dinner. Ryan was just as excited to see Jackson as Endy was. However they were gonna have to fight Dot to get him away. Eventually the kids went out back to play and Blake took Jackson from the women telling them they couldn't have him back until his dinner was ready. Once dinner is on the table Blake puts Jackson in his car seat in between him and Gwen.   
..................................................  
Blake, Gwen, and the kids had a long day. Blake's whole family was fawning over Jackson the entire day while still making sure to include Lena in everything since she was still adjusting to not having her parent's undivided attention all the time. When they got back to the ranch that night Blake checked in on the horses since they hadn't been there in a while. While he was in the barn he received a phone call from his label. They needed him to go to Nashville for some promo work and to look at new songs for a second album. The first album had 4 hit singles already and they wanted to get working on a follow up as soon as possible. He was dreading having this conversation with Gwen. Things had been going really well for them since they got the routine with Jackson going smoothly. Their son had finally adjusted to being home and was now sleeping for longer intervals between his feedings so the couple wasn't quite so sleep deprived. When Blake walked into the house he didn't see his family so he made his way to the bathroom next to the kid's rooms. He heard Gwen talking to their son and daughter so he quietly lead against the door frame and looked on with love in his eyes. Every time he saw Gwen with the kids it made him fall in love with her more and more. Lena was helping Gwen give Jackson a bath because she had told her mom and dad that part of being a big sister was to make Jackson laugh and not be scared. 

"Lena baby you are doing a great job. You're such a good big sister."

"Thank you mommy. I love my brother! He's cute."

Blake cleared his throat so they would know he was there "ahem". "How are my two favorite girls and my favorite lil' man doing?"

"Hey babe...we are good..just finishing up Jackson's bath. Lena is helping me keep him entertained."

"Thank you for helping mom princess! How about I take you to bed and read you a story while mommy gets Jackson dressed."

"Okay daddy...can we read the baby book?"

"The Bernestein Bears and the New Baby? That one princess?"

"Yes daddy...please?"

"Okay kiddo..say goodnight to mommy and we will go read."

Lena kisses her mom goodnight and Blake picks her up to take her to her bed. He reads the book she requested and through the whole thing Lena tells Blake that she is going to be the best big sister to Jackson. When she finally starts to doze off he places a kiss on her forehead "goodnight my princess...I love you to the moon and back!"

Blake makes his way to Jackson's room after putting Lena to bed and locking up. Gwen was just placing him in his crib so he walked over and gave his son a kiss. "Goodnight lil' man....papa loves you!" He takes Gwen's hand and leads them to their bedroom. They get ready for bed side by side in the master bathroom. Blake is just finishing brushing his teeth when Gwen looks over at him trying to figure out why he is being so quiet all of a sudden.

"Babe you okay?"

"Hmmm? Oh yeah I'm fine."

"Come on Blake you know I can read you...something is bothering you."

"It's nothing baby...come on let's go to bed."

The couple makes their way to their bed and Gwen gravitates right to her favorite spot...Blake's chest. "Okay babe...spill...what's eating at you?"

"Okay you win...ummm...I got a call from Nashville today...from the label."

"Okay what's so bad about that" Gwen asks.

"Well remember they wanted me to do a bit more promo since the 4th single hit #1?" he asks looking deep into her eyes. 

"Yeah I remember babe...what's wrong..they want you there next week or something?"

"No baby...they need me there tomorrow afternoon."

"Blake...WHAT!?" Gwen exclaims "We just got here and now you are going to leave?"

"Gwen...darlin'...I don't choose when I have to go. Being a new artist I am at their beck and call. I am sorry baby. Why don't you and the kids come with me?"

"Are you serious Blake? No...no we won't be coming with you just to sit in a hotel room all week again. It is not fair to the kids!"

"Gwen where is this coming from? You and Lena came last time and you were able to work from the room and everything. I can make sure we get a bigger suite this time if that is the problem" Blake says....anger starting to consume him. He doesn't understand what Gwen's issue is with going. He knows it is short notice but if he wants a career in music the early years are crucial.

"Blake...we just got to Tish and we are supposed to be having some down time with our children and your family. They haven't seen Jackson except for at the hospital. We were supposed to focus on family this week. Not spend it in a hotel room waiting for you to come home every night."

"Gwen I told you I didn't choose this. I cannot help it. I work for them. They choose when I need to be places. They were very flexible with the Jackson's birth and everything; rescheduling interviews and what not. If I say no and am hard to work with I lose my contract honey. I am doing this for our family. Yes I love to sing...it is my passion but it is also how I provide for y'all. You can't fault me for wanting to give you the best life possible."

"You know what Blake I don't...but the least you could have done is asked if they could just wait a few days. But guess what you didn't...so forget it. Just go...do what you need to do!"

"So will you come with me?"

"No..I will not come with you. The kids and I will stay here. At least here they can see their family and not be cooped up in a hotel room all week long."

"Gwen please come with me. I will try to get out of the studio earlier this time."

"Blake I said No! I am not going to sit in a hotel room waiting and then when 9 o'clock hits I have wasted a day away."

"You know what Gwen...fine...do what you think is best...but you know what...no one is forcing you to stay in a hotel room the whole time. You could go see the sights in Nashville while I am working."

"Why are you making it seem like I can't do things without you? I am an independent woman Blake...you have made me see that it is okay to do things for me but right now I don't want to do things without you when we are supposed to be on vacation. I want to do things as a family. So just go do your thing but the kids and I are staying here."

"Gwen please baby...I don't want to fight about this. I am trying here but you don't just tell the president of a record label NO. It doesn't work that way."

"Yeah I can see that...just go Blake...it is what it is. I am going to bed now...night" Gwen says distantly. She turns her back to her husband and goes to sleep without saying I love you for the first time ever. Blake however makes sure to say it because he never wants her to forget how much he loves her "night baby...I love you" he whispers hoping she heard him...but deep down he knows she didn't hear a thing.

The next morning Gwen wakes up to Blake over the baby monitor "Hey lil' man...papa has to go to work but I will be back as soon as possible. I love you Jackson Tollison...please don't ever forget that. Be good for your mama...she is sad right now because of me but I promise I will fix it. See you soon! Papa loves you to the moon and back!" Blake makes his way to Lena's room and she stirs in her bed.

"Where you going daddy?"

"I have to go to Nashville for work princess but I will be back soon okay? Make sure you help your mama out with Jackson and ask her to play games and stuff with you. It will make her happy while I am gone. I love you to the moon and back princess!"

"Okay daddy...I love you too!"

Blake makes his way back to the bedroom to get his bag and made his way to Gwen's side of the bed. He placed a kiss on her temple while she pretended to be asleep. What Blake didn't know was that she heard the conversations he had with his kids. 

"Gwen baby I need to leave in order to catch my flight. I promise I will be back as soon as I can."

Gwen stirs in the bed and sits up "yeah okay Blake...safe flight!"

"Gwen baby please don't be upset...I don't want to go either but the sooner I do the sooner I get back."

"Yep"

"Well...okay...I have to go...I love you darlin' ALWAYS" and he kisses her one more time before heading out the door. When he leaves the room Gwen whispers an "I love you" in return but Blake never heard it. He was walking out the front door with tears in his eyes while his wife was laying in bed doing the same.


	13. Staying in touch

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Updates might be a little slower. We have a lot going on sorry.

Gwen lays in bed crying for who knows how long after Blake walked out the door. She misses him already and wants to call him; tell him she is sorry and she wants to bring the kids, but she doesn't. He has to know that when he promises family time, it means family time. Him letting the label yank him around without even trying to get them to wait even a day is not okay. Gwen gets up and focuses on the kids for the next two days. When her phone rings the third day she is pulled out of her focus seeing her mother-in-laws name instead of Blake's, like the 300 other times Blake tried to call. 

"Hello"

"Hi Gwen darlin', I'm glad I caught you. I tried get ahold of Blake but he must have forgot his phone, since he didn't answer" Dots cheery voice comes through

"Dot are you busy today?" Gwen asks trying not to give away she is upset, but the quiver in her voice instantly tells that she is.

"Gwen darling what is wrong? Where is Blake? What happened?" 

"On a plane." 

"On a plane? Where is he going? What happened?" Gwen breaks down sobbing again 

She cries so hard that she can't even get out a few words much less make them coherent. Dot's stomach drops. She knows this isn't good. 

"Gwen honey I'm gonna get my shoes on and I'll be right over okay? Everything is gonna be ok. I'm coming." 

Gwen responds with an "ok", before Dot hangs up and bolts for her car. 

When she gets there she lets herself in with her key and searches for Gwen and the kids. She follows the sound of the tv to the living room and sees Lena on the floor with a bowl of Cheerios. She heads down the hall in search of Gwen and Jackson. She finds Gwen in Jackson's room feeding him his bottle.

"Gwen darling are you ok?" Only when Gwen looks up shaking her head, does Dot see the tears rolling down her face. "Gwen everything is gonna be ok." She says walking over to Gwen wrapping her into her embrace. "Gwen you have to tell me what's going on for me to help." Jackson finishes the last of his bottle so Gwen puts the bottle down on the side table and moves him to over her shoulder to burp him. 

"The record label called last night and told Blake they needed him in Nashville today." 

"Today? Y'all just got here. They couldn't wait a couple days?" 

"I don't know; he said he didn't ask. He left this morning after we fought about it all night."

"I let him leave this morning without him hearing me say 'I love you'. We are supposed to be on vacation as a family. He wanted us to go with him but that's not fair to the kids to be cooped up in a hotel all week. Not to mention the fact that this is the first time you guys have seen Jackson. I wasn't gonna take him from you guys." 

"Lets take Jackson out with Lena and I'll fix tea. Then we can talk." 

Gwen agrees and gets up moving to the living room. They had ordered a baby swing and had it delivered before they got there so Gwen put Jackson in the swing so she and Dot could talk. Dot handed Gwen a mug full of tea. 

"Gwen can I tell you some stories about Blake? I think these will help you understand him a little better. I'm not saying he did or didn't make the right decision by going to Nashville. I just want you to have the full picture." Gwen shakes her head letting Dot know to go ahead. "I know you know about my son Richie and what happened but what I doubt Blake told you was everything after he passed. Richie was Blake's hero. He looked up to him so much. He listened to any music Richie did, and Richie was the one that taught Blake to play the guitar. So needless to say, he was devastated when Richie passed. Even though Blake was probably taking it the hardest, he never left Endy and me. He gave up a shot at Nashville about 8 years ago because he wouldn't leave us. I literally had to push him out the door to get him to go to that audition in LA. It was time for him to put his dreams first. He knows that this deal is his last shot and if this doesn't work he is gonna have to farm to support you guys." 

"Which means he would need to live here full time." Gwen concludes 

"More than likely yes. When he turned that deal down to be here for our family, he was with Miranda. That very decision was the start of his fights with Miranda. From that point on things only got worse between them until he caught her cheating. Whether it be the right decision in this situation Blake sees this as the only way to keep his family. He loves you and the kids more than life itself. It's in the way his eyes light up when you laugh. It's in the smile he has when he watches you with Lena or Jackson. It's in the way he physically relaxes when his body makes contact with yours, even be it just a pinky. It's in the protective way he rounds you and the kids up when someone is upset or scared. Family. You and the kids are his everything Gwen." 

"He didn't tell me all that." Gwen says feeling guilty she is upset.

"I know he didn't. He wouldn't have wanted to see that look on you face you have now." 

It's then that Gwen's world shatters when they hear Lena scream bloody murder at the same time they hear the loud thud. Gwen rushes to her side. There is blood. So much blood. Gwen sees the gash in her forehead and her stomach sinks. She applies pressure and can hear Dot already on the phone with 911. The next steps are all a blur for Gwen as she loads into the ambulance with Lena, who hasn't calmed at all. Dot tells her that she will take Jackson and follow them to the hospital. Both women are distracted by the fear and worry, that no one thinks of the person they were talking about. Blake.   
\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Blake has been miserable in Nashville, not that he is letting on to any of the label execs or studio musicians. He may be upset but he is being nothing but professional and his normal self at work. He has been putting in 18 hour days trying to finish up some songs so that he might be able to go home sooner than expected. The past couple of days have been torture. Gwen won't answer his phone calls and by the time he gets to his hotel room it is so late he doesn't want to wake her up with the 100th call of the day at that time of night so he just lays there staring at the ceiling hoping his family is okay. He'd thought about calling his mom, after all she had called him when he was recording, but he didn't want to burden her with his problems. His decision had been made...this would be his last day in Nashville if he had anything to do about it. He would talk to Jake and see where they were at and get a good feel as to whether or not he could fly out that afternoon.

Blake tried calling his wife again this morning but she still didn't answer so he went about getting ready, packing his carry-on suitcase he had brought in the hopes he could leave today. When he arrived at the studio he was hopeful because Jake wasn't usually at his sessions but today when Blake walked in there he was sitting by the sound board.

"Morning Blake" Jake said standing to shake his newest star's hand.

"Morning Jake! What brings you by this morning?"

"Well Leo called me to come in and hear what you guys have laid down so far. He thinks this might just be a good stopping point for now so we can master the tracks we have so far. If we have 6 or so good songs to start with we can always finish up the rest in L.A. in a month or so."

"Well that'd be great man...let's give em' a listen and see what you think" Blake replied.

As the men listened to the tracks Blake was feeling confident. Jake wasn't always an easy man to read in the studio but today was different. For some reason Blake could tell he was feeling the music. The songs they had recorded were a mix of good ol' upbeat country songs to ballads that Blake had come up with. He hates fighting with Gwen but this one pulled a song out of him this time. When Jake heard "I Need My Girl" he turned to Blake and saw the glimmer in his eyes.

"Everything good with Gwen man?"

"Yeah why do you ask?"

"Really Blake? I may just be the CEO but the title alone speaks volumes" Jake says half smiling at Blake while shaking his head. "This has got to be an adjustment for y'all. You were married before all of this came to fruition man. Becoming a star takes a lot of work and can take you from your family a lot. Once you get even more established you will be able to be more involved in the planning of tours and interviews and what not. That being said Blake if we call you to have you come to Nashville and you have a prior family commitment or something you need to let me know. I am a family man Blake and I know how my wife was when I would leave all of the time for meetings on the other side of the country. If Gwen wants to come with you, you know that is fine but if you need a couple days to prepare for your travel then just say so. We will work with you. We want you to be successful but we don't want it to cost you your family!"

"Umm how did you know?"

"I told you...been there done that. I can see the signs. That being said Blake...that song...AMAZING!!!! It is a sure hit! You and Leo and the band have laid down some great tracks. I see no reason why we can't get these all mastered and go hunting for some other songs to add to the new album. Let's look to meet up in about a month in L.A. if that is where you will be at the time. I know you mentioned y'all split time between L.A. and Oklahoma."

"That would be great man. Gwen and the kids are in Tishomingo right now but we will be back in L.A. in a couple of weeks."

"Great...I will be in touch. In the meantime see if you can't channel some inspiration from that gorgeous wife of yours and write a couple more hits. Now get out of here and go back to your family. Stay blessed Blake!"

"Thank you Jake. You stay blessed too...my regards to the family" Blake says shaking his boss's hand and almost sprinting to the car. Once he gets his luggage from the hotel Blake gets in the rental car and heads for the airport. He doesn't care how much it is going to cost him to change his flight; he just wants to get home to his wife and kids. After dropping the car off he heads to the ticket counter.

"How may I help you sir?"

"Yes ma'am...I need to change my ticket please. I wasn't supposed to leave for a few more days but I need to get home as soon as possible please."

"Okay Mr. Shelton let's take a look" the ticket agent replies. "Well sir you are in luck. It seems your ticket was already changed. It was called in about 20 minutes ago. Your flight leaves in an hour sir. Oh and this is yours too" she says as she hands an envelope to Blake "you have a great flight and thank you for flying with American Airlines."

"Wow...okay...thank you ma'am. You have a blessed day" Blake says flashing his dimples at the agent.

He heads toward security and places his bag on the conveyor belt. He makes his way through the checkpoint and finds a seat at the terminal while he waits. He opens the envelope and finds a small card inside. It reads:

Blake,

Never be afraid to ask for help. We are all a family here at the label. We have each other's backs. Now enjoy your family and say hello to Gwen for my wife and me. I will be in touch.

Jake

Blake sits there shaking his head. He has to remember to thank Chuck when they get back to L.A. because if it wasn't for him he would have never met Jake and might not even be signed yet. While he waits Blake calls Jake to thank him for the flight change. Jake thinks nothing of it and tells Blake it is the least he can do. Next thing he knows his flight is being called and Blake heads for the plane. A few hours later (thanks to those pesky time zones) Blake has landed in Oklahoma City and decides to just rent a car one way to Tish. He doesn't want to bother anyone to come get him...besides it would take 2 hours to get to him and 2 hours to get back. Throughout the drive home he tries to call Gwen but there is still no answer. He even calls his mom but she isn't answering either "great" he thinks "all of the women in my life are ignoring me now".

When he pulls into the long drive way leading to the ranch anxiety hits him. What if Gwen went back to L.A.? What would he do then? He gets out of the car and heads into the house calling for his wife.

"Gwen? Gwen baby I'm home!" No response...all he hears is silence. "Gwen, Lena! Where are y'all?" He yells as he makes his way from room to room. No Lena, No Jackson, No Gwen...come to think of it...no SUV in the driveway. "What the hell is going on" he says to himself. He tries calling her again but still no answer. So he goes to the kitchen grabs a glass of water and sits at the table. He has to think of his next course of action. Does he call Todd and Jen? No, because if Gwen didn't go back to L.A. it will make them panic. He decides to take the rental and drive around town to see if he spots their car. He heads to the door, grabbing his favorite trucker hat from the ranch and throwing it on his head. When he yanks the door open he runs head on into his wife.

"Oh shit! Gwen what the? I am so sorry baby!" 

"Blake what are you doing home?"

"I came home early. I worked 18 hour days to get tracks laid down so I could come home early. Look I am sorry baby. I know I should have asked them for time so I could square things away with you. I just didn't want to mess things up with Jake and the label."

"Blake it's okay...I understand. I just wish you had told me right away. Wait here I just came to open the door so I could get Lena in and your mom could bring Jackson!"

"Oh I will get her" he says rushing past his wife.

"Ummm Blake be....." she tries to warn him but doesn't get it out in time.

"Gwen...what the hell happened? Why is our daughter's head all bandaged up?" Blake asks as he reaches for Lena's seat belt to unbuckle her from her toddler seat. "Come here princess...come with daddy."

"Daddy you home? My head hurts bad daddy!"

Gwen comes running to the car and can see the anger in his eyes. "Blake come on let's get her inside and I will explain!"

"Blake son....you need to relax...if your daughter senses your tension she'll be tense and she needs to relax right now" his mom adds.

"Well hello to you too mom!"

"Calm down...hello son!"

They all make their way into the house settling in the living room. Blake sits in their overstuffed chair and puts his feet up on the ottoman so he can let Lena stretch out on his long lap. "Now who is going to tell me why the hell I wasn't called about this...or better yet why one of y'all didn't answer the phone one of the hundred times I called? I come home early trying to make things right only to find our daughter bandaged up and telling me her head hurts."

Dot speaks first "son...first of all you really need to calm down. She is okay. Second of all I will explain to you what happened but you will sit and listen and not interrupt me..you got that?"

"Yes ma'am"

"Okay so I came over yesterday to check on Gwen because she was upset on the phone when I called. I was trying to get a hold of you to make plans with you, your wife, and my grandkids but you didn't answer!"

"I was..." he tried to say in the studio but Dot didn't let him finish

"uh uh...I know now where you were but at the time all I focused on was the fact that your wife was upset. So I came over to visit with her. We were outside talking when we heard a sound and noticed Lena had fallen. She hit her head and it split open a bit so we went to the ER. She is okay son...needed a few stitches but she will be fine. They observed her over night; that's why we are just now getting back here!"

"Okay...still doesn't answer why neither of y'all thought to call me...HER FATHER!!!"

Gwen speaks up "Blake...I didn't want to bother you. I knew you would be working in the studio and after the way we left things I figured you wouldn't want to talk to me. Never mind the fact that once I got to the hospital I was so focused on making sure Lena was okay that I didn't think of it."

"Well honestly Gwen the fact that you didn't think to call our daughter's father...me..your husband hurts.!" Blake replies as he stands with Lena in his hands. He takes his daughter to the couch and lays her down. He walks past his wife and mother and storms off to the master bedroom slamming the door for good measure.

Gwen is sitting in the living room in tears while Dot looks on. "Gwen darlin' let me put these two down for a nap, you go to Blake, and I will make lunch while y'all two talk okay. It will be okay. He is just hurtin' right now. His family is his world."

Gwen makes her way to their bedroom knocking first to be polite. "Blake can I come in" she asks. When there is no reply she just lets herself in. She doesn't see him at first as he isn't on the bed. She looks to the french doors that lead to the patio off of their room that he had added on when they came down last time. He had wanted a place for them to look out at the sunset but still be able to get to the kids quickly. That is where Gwen spots him...sitting in the lounge chair, head in his hands...sobbing. It broke her heart. She did this to him. She walked over to the chair and sat at the end facing her husband. She placed her hands on his face and lifted it so their eyes met.

"Don't cry babe...please don't cry" she says as she wipes his tears away while placing a kiss on his lips. "I am so sorry babe. I was being selfish. I didn't want you to leave and I was being spiteful by not answering your calls. I am so sorry I hurt you!"

Blake tried to control the tears but they weren't stopping completely. His daughter was hurt and no one told him. What if something worse had happened. "Gwen...why didn't you call me when she was hurt? What is something had been seriously wrong?"

"Babe...I know I should have called. I don't have an excuse. I was so focused on getting her seen and hearing what the doctor's said I forgot to call. Your mom had Jackson in the waiting room so she wasn't nearby for me to ask her either. It was wrong babe I know...I am so sorry!"

"Gwen...you are my family...you three are the most important people in my life" he chokes out "if anything happens to any of you I don't know what I would do."

"I know babe...we feel the same way. The past few days without you have been awful. I am so glad you're back" she tells her husband... "speaking of...how is it you are back so soon?"

"Jake" is all he says

"Jake what babe? Please tell me you didn't just leave...this is your dream babe..." she says before he cuts her off

"No...Jake heard the song I wrote and could tell I was missing my family. He liked the songs we laid down so far and told me we were done until next month. Then he told me how he and his wife had a hard time adjusting to his life as CEO at first, what with all the traveling. Told me next time to tell him if I need a few days to get things in order and it wouldn't be a problem. I flew out as soon as I could after that."

Blake leaned forward and took his wife into his embrace "Gwen...I should have spoken to you as soon as they called. I should have called them back to ask for a couple of days and for that I am sorry baby. I am still learning the ropes of this business so all I ask is that you bear with me. But for future reference...I don't care how mad we might be with each other...please answer your phone. I don't ever what to not be in contact with you and our children ever again. Can you do that for me?"

"Awww Cowboy...of course I can. I really am sorry for how I acted babe. When you left that morning I heard you talking through the monitor and all I wanted to do was run to you, but I was being stubborn. Then I was mad at myself because I told you "I love you" so quietly you didn't hear me before you left."

Her husband places a kiss on her temple "baby....I love you and our kids more than life itself; even if we are fighting. You can't shut me out though. It isn't fair to me, you, or the kids."

"I know babe..the same goes for you. Your mom and I talked about why this dream is so important to you. She thought you had told me about the connection to your brother and how your ex basically chose to get her career started by whatever means necessary. You have to up front with me too babe. We both have had our secrets we are scared to tell one another but babe we can't keep doing that. It will tear us apart and I for one never want to lose you."

"I promise to work on that sunshine. It is hard for me to open up about personal things...especially Richie...but I will definitely work on it. If you have to push me to open up then so be it and I will do the same for you!"

They sit there embracing one another for a few more minutes when Gwen breaks the silence "come on Cowboy...your mom is making lunch while the kids nap...you must be starving...let's go eat."

"Okay darlin'...hey Gwen...."

"Yeah babe?"

"I love you baby!"

"I love you too babe...ALWAYS!"

"Mmmm...he says to his wife as he holds her close "ALWAYS!"


	14. Protecting What's Mine

"Ok so the date for the baptism and party will be August 12th. That's a little more than two weeks from now." Gwen says

"Do you have the Godparents picked out yet?" Justine, Gwen's best friend, asks.

"Yeah Blake and I decided to have Luke and Caroline as Lena's Godparents. They were there when we found her and she loves her uncle Luke like crazy." 

"Luke? How is Luke with kids? Are you sure you trust him?" 

"He is a lot more responsible than he would like you to believe. Plus now that he and Caroline are married, he has really done some growing up. He absolutely adores Lena as well. It's cute cause he calls her Nae."

"Nae?" 

"Yeah Nae is short for Renee which is her middle name. He said he wanted to give her a nickname no one else would use. He wanted them to have that special bond." 

"Wow he never hit me as the softy type" both women laugh "what did he say when you guys asked him?" 

Well......(the memory flashes in Gwen's head) 

Blake and Gwen had known it was only fitting that Luke and Caroline be Lena's Godparents. They were the ones who had been there with them through the whole process of making Lena theirs. So they had asked Dot to keep Jackson one night while in Tish so they could take Luke, Caroline, and Lena out to ask them. The moment they got there and Lena saw Luke she was instantly running to him. She had to sit next to him through dinner. When Lena needed to go potty Gwen got up to take her but she insisted on Aunt Caroline taking her. This only made Blake and Gwen more confident that they had picked the right people to be Lena's Godparents. Heaven forbid something happen to them they wanted to know that Lena was comfortable and well taken care of. Dinner was winding down and Gwen gave Blake the look that said to go ahead and bring it up. 

"So Gwen and I have something we would like to ask you and Caroline." Blake says looking at Luke 

"Ok man what's up?"

"We are planning on having the kids baptized in LA and we want you guys to be there and to be involved." 

"Ok just tell us what you need us to do and we are on it." Luke says genuinely meaning it.

"Well Blake and I want you and Caroline to be Lena's Godparents. That is if you want to." Gwen joins in.

Luke sits there not answering. Caroline reaches under the table taking his hand in hers and smiling at him. At first Gwen and Blake are confused and concerned as to what the reaction is. 

"We..." Luke tries to get out but his voice fails him. It's then that Blake and Gwen realize that Luke is emotional. 

"What Luke means is yes. We would be honored to be Lena's Godparents. That little girl means the world to us and knowing that you guys would entrust her to us is overwhelming. We love you guys like family." Caroline says before turning and looking at Luke nodding her heard. 

"So guys. I just really do love this little girl" he says wiping a strand of her hair out of her face. "I never thought I would ever be interested in kids until this little one came into all of our lives. I never thought I would be good enough to be a daddy. You guys have no idea what this means to us. I had a melt down earlier and thanks to you guys I see that everything is going to be ok." Luke says staring into Caroline's face.

"What were you upset about man?" Blake barely finishes before Gwen gasps. 

"Oh my god! Caroline you're pregnant?" Gwen asks about ready to jump up out of her chair with excitement. 

"Yeah we got a call from the doctors office this morning confirming it. We weren't gonna tell anyone yet but this was a special case. Just please don't tell anyone yet." 

"Oh my gosh I'm so excited for you guys!!!" Gwen says getting up and walking around to give hugs. 

"Welcome to the father club buddy! If you ever need anything let us know ok. It's a big transition and we are here for you guys." Blake says

"Absolutely anything you need! Oh and when you find out what you're having you can go through Lena and Jackson's old clothes. I'm so excited!"   
..........  
"They were really excited and grateful that we asked them. It was emotional and really good." 

"That's so awesome. I'm really glad they reacted that way. Maybe they will have kids one day." Justine says "do you have ideas on food?" 

"What do you think of burgers, hot dogs, and steak for the meats?" 

"Yeah that sounds like a good and relatively easy idea. What about salad, corn on the cob, and some kind of pasta salad to go with the meat?" 

"Yeah that sounds perfect! Oh and I thought about have a few bounce houses set up for the kids." 

"That sounds perfect. We should have some beer and wine too for the adults as well." 

"Yeah absolutely! Now on the invites I put no gifts necessary, these two have more than enough toys. Poor Blake gets suckered into buying Lena a new toy every time he takes her anywhere. The sweet part is she makes him get Jackson one to, saying she doesn't want him to be jealous or feel sad." 

"She is literally the sweetest. I just don't know how anyone could ever hurt her. Like how do you hurt someone so sweet and innocent like that? Does she remember any of it now?" 

"I don't think she does totally. She has never mentioned anything about it but there are little things she does that makes me think she subconsciously does. Like the other day she started to throw a fit because she wanted chocolate milk and we said no, Blake raised his voice and she stepped back without even thinking about it. When she realized she did she moved back forward. Just little things like that, but generally she is such a sweet well behaved kid it's crazy." 

"I'm really glad you guys found her. I think it did wonders for you guys as well as for her. And Jackson he is nothing short of a miracle." 

"Yeah Blake and I went through hell to find each other but since then we have so blessed."  
\------------------------------------------   
With Gwen and Justine finalizing the plans for the baptism and the party Blake had time to make some time for interviews on the media circuit. There was an awards show coming up and he was nominated for best new artist. When his manager called to tell him the news he was floored. He couldn't believe he was nominated after just one album. He reminisces back to the moment he told his wife.

"Baby, baby where are you?" he called out

"I'm in Jackson's room babe...are you ok?"

Blake came running into his son's room "Gwen...oh my God you aren't going to believe this. I just got a call from my manager and guess what? You won't guess...guess what?"

Gwen laughs at her husband; his excitement reminds her of a kid at Christmas time "I don't know what to guess...you hit number #1 with another single?"

"Oh my God...no not yet...Sunshine...I was nominated for best new artist for the Academy of Country Music Awards. Can you believe it baby?" he said while picking her up in his arms and swinging her around.

"Blakee...Oh my God...I am so proud of you babe! You deserve it. When is the show?"

"It is next week. I know it is short notice and right before the baptism but baby will you please go with me? I can't do this without you?"

Gwen takes his face into her hands "Cowboy...you couldn't keep me away if you tried!"

Blake snaps out of his daydream as he makes his way to the studio to be interviewed for E! News. He gets escorted to make-up and then makes his way to the stage. When they went live the reporter didn't mince words.

"So Blake..thank you for joining us today."

"Thank you for having me Janice."

"So how has L.A. been treating you the past year or so?"

"Oh it is fine thank you. I spent part of my time here and part in my home state of Oklahoma."

"That's right...says here you and your wife, fashion designer, Gwen Stefani split your time. How do your kids handle that?

Blake is caught a bit off guard because he really doesn't like it when people try to bring his kids into the spotlight. He tries not to let on that it bothers him and thinks up a way to divert to a new question.

"Well, my whole family enjoys both places and since we have family here and there it is nice to visit with everyone when we can."

The reporter can sense that he is shutting down on the family talk.

"So you are nominated for an ACM Award for best new artist. How does it feel to be competing against your ex for the same award?"

Blake gives her a confused look "umm it doesn't make me feel any sort of way. I am in country music because it is my passion. It is what I do. I have never wanted to do anything but perform and pass on my love for the music to others. I commend everyone nominated in my category and wish everyone the best of luck. Ultimately I hope to be the winner of the award but even if I am not; it is an honor in it's own right just to be nominated!"

Janice seems at a loss for words as she thinks to herself "damn this guy can't be cracked. He swayed from the topic of kids...no dirt there. He refused to acknowledge his ex...no dirt there. What do I have to do?"

She looks back to Blake and tries to bait him one last time "so Blake are you attending the awards?"

"Yes ma'am...my wife and I will be attending" he says softly with a sparkle in his eyes.

"So what are you thoughts on the possibility of running into your ex? Does that worry you?"

He looks at her again and conveys his thought of "we are done here".... "You know what Janice...no it doesn't worry me. It doesn't bother me or worry me because no matter the outcome of the show I will be there with the most beautiful woman in the world, inside and outside and at the end of the night I will go home to my children and all will be right with the world...but thank you for your concern." He knows by the look on his face that he has won this round. No more questions are coming.

"Well thank you again Blake for coming in for us today. Best of luck to you on Sunday at the show. We look forward to new music from you soon."

Blake takes the mic off, politely thanks the host and takes his leave. Never again...he vows that he will never do an interview like that again as he dials his manager. He tells him everything that was discussed and Brandon is livid. He promises Blake that he will be calling the studio right away to tell them that his family is off limits in interviews. He can't force them to do it but he sure can make it difficult to talk to Blake again.  
\----------------------------------------------  
The week flies by what with all of the party planning and it time for them to head to the awards show. It is in Nashville so they are heading there tonight for the show tomorrow. Dot is going to meet them there so she can watch the kids. 

When they arrive in Nashville they meet Dot at the hotel and she cannot contain her excitement at seeing her grandbabies.

"Where are my babies...come see Mawmaw Lena!" she says reaching for her granddaughter. After Lena gives her grandma a hug Gwen hands Jackson to her. She is so taken with her grandson. She never thought Blake would find someone as amazing as Gwen to settle down with. She literally thanks God every night for his happiness.

"So son...are you excited for tomorrow?"

"Yeah mom...it will be a great experience. Win or lose...I don't care...I have the best family in the world which is better than any award any day. But I won't complain if I win" he replies laughing.

It was late when they arrived so the kids have been put to bed and Gwen and Blake say goodnight to Dot as she makes her way to her room. They tell her they will leave around 7pm to get to the venue in time so she says she will be at their room by 645pm. It has been a long day so Blake and Gwen check in on the kids one more time before falling into bed and falling asleep moments after saying "I Love You" to one another.

The next day they go to their favorite breakfast spot, Pancake Pantry, so Dot can experience it finally. They decide to go to the zoo because Lena enjoyed it so much last time. By the time they got back to the hotel it was time to get ready for the awards. Gwen wore a long red, flowing dress and Blake wore his jeans with a black button down and a red tie that matched his wife's dress...and a vest...because he knows how much she loves them. Dot comes to the room and gets settled with the kids.

"Okay mom...we won't be too late. I have to make my rounds at an after party but we should be back too late like I said." Blake went to his daughter and kissed her on her forehead "when we get back you'll be asleep baby girl but we'll come in and check on you". He made his way to Jackson and did the same "okay little man..you're in charge here. Take care of your sister and mawmaw! I love you little man! Love you Lena!" Blake waits for Gwen to say her goodbyes before leading her to the waiting limo courtesy of Jake.

When they arrive to the show they begin their walk on the red carpet. The reporters were eating it up...stopping Blake whenever he got near one.

"Blake over here...Mr. Shelton!" one yelled

"Yes ma'am...what can I do for you?"

"Stephanie from Entertainment Weekly....how does it feel to be nominated?"

He looks to Gwen and squeezes her hand "well Stephanie I can honestly say it is truly an honor to be nominated along with such talented people."

"You have had a few hits already off this first album of yours...what inspired you?"

"Well, nothing is more inspirational to me than my wife here. She is the reason I am standing here with you. Her faith in me motivated me to never give up my dreams no matter how hard it has been or will be. She's my rock."

Gwen smiles up at her husband with nothing but love in her eyes. They make their way down the carpet and are heading to their seats. As the night progresses Blake is getting anxious. He turns to Gwen and whispers in her ear "baby...I am nervous. What if I don't win?"

"Babe...no matter what I am proud of you. Nobody deserves this more than you. What are you really worried about?"

"What if she wins Gwen? She has done everything to move on to the scene and I mean anything."

"Blake look at me...don't worry about her. Don't let her steal your moment. I'm proud of you, our family is proud of you, and your kids are proud of you." She kisses him on his cheek and squeezes his hand. It is all he needs to relax and she can feel his body relax.

It is time...Blake is bouncing his knee faster than imaginable. Then he hears it.

Trace Adkins is the presenter..."and the nominees for Best New Artist are...Miranda Lambert, Blake Shelton, and Dierks Bentley!" The audience claps for the nominees as they await the winner. "The ACM goes to.....my man Blake Shelton!"

Blake is so stunned he doesn't move until Gwen tells him "babe you won...go babe go!" He turns to his wife and the cameras are all on them projecting them to the jumbo screen. Blake stands up, takes her face in his hands and kisses her gently on the lips. He makes his way to the stage and receives the award from Trace. He had met him a few times at events he has attended and they hit it off.

"Way to go brother...I am proud of you." Trace says

"Thank you man...it means a lot coming from you."

Blake stands at the microphone..."wow..this is amazing. I am honestly shocked. I did not expect this. Umm...wow..let me first thank the academy and my label Rare Records and especially Jake. I want to thank everyone who worked on the album with me...without y'all it would not be possible. I want to thank my friend Chuck...without you I would not have met Jake. I want to thank my family, especially my kids who should be fast asleep right now...and of course my beautiful wife. Baby...this is for you. Without you the inspiration would not have been there. I started writing again because of you. You are my saving grace. God Gave Me You and I couldn't be more blessed. I love you!"

Blake makes his way off the stage and Gwen is escorted to him as those coordinating everything knew they were leaving shortly. As she makes her way to her husband she spots a woman walking his way. She moves quickly to Blake's side when she sees him tense up.

"Hey babe!" she says kissing him and wrapping him in a hug.

"Hey gorgeous...there you are!" Blake says returning the hug and kiss. That is when they both hear it.

"Blake....Blake!"

The couple turns and they see her. His ex....Miranda. The one who almost broke him.

"Miranda!"

"Really Blake...that is all you have to say?"

"What would you like me to say? I have said it all to you time and time again. Now if you don't mind my wife and I have to get to my labels party so we can go home to our kids!" He said pulling Gwen into his side.

"Your kids? What do you mean kids?"

"You know the tiny humans that a husband and a wife create together? Yeah those...we have two of them! Now if you'll excuse us!"

Gwen is just looking on; proud of her man for standing his ground. She tugs on his hand and looks to his ex "I believe he has made his point. He has moved on and you can't hurt him anymore...so if you would be so kind as to stay away...that would be great. You have a blessed evening. Better luck next time!" she said with a smirk. 

The couple walks away leaving Blake's ex staring at them slack-jawed. She can't believe he stood up to her let alone that his wife did...his wife...what the hell had she done? He really has moved on. She lost him forever...she lost the best man she's known...and for what? To get to the top in any way she could..but Blake..he did what he had set out to do when they first met. He's made it to the top...with his integrity in tact. 

As Blake and Gwen make their way to the exit Blake pauses for a minute "Baby..thank you for coming tonight. I am sorry you had to be a part of that; but I appreciate you having my back!"

"Cowboy what have I told you...there is no place else I would have rather have been than right by your side tonight! Nobody disrespects my man! Especially not her...now let's go back to the room, send your mom to hers, and celebrate!" Gwen says winking at Blake and squeezing his backside just to send the message.

"Oh we will celebrate alright....all night if I have any say! I love you Gwen! Always!"

"I love you too Blake! Always!"


	15. Baptism

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the slow updates we have a clear plan from now to the final chapter. We will be wrapping things up soon.

The sun was shining today Gwen thought to herself. The sun is shining, she is healthy, her babies are asleep in their rooms, and her handsome husband was just stirring in their bed. She would never tire of waking up and stepping out on the balcony of their house, taking a deep breath, and thanking God for her life.

She was deep in thought when the door behind her slowly crept open. She didn't even hear it. He was being very stealth like this morning. Blake slowly made his way to his wife and wrapped his arms around her waist, enclosing her in a hug, and lowering his head to the crook of her neck; placing a kiss there while he was at it.

"Good morning gorgeous" he said in his oh so sexy sleepy voice. Gwen thought his voice was always sexy but for some reason in the morning he was even more sexy.

"Mmmmm..." she moaned leaning back against her husband's broad chest "Morning handsome" she replied as she placed her hands on his arms and pulled him even closer to her back.

"Are you ready for today baby?"

"I am babe...are you?"

"I am sunshine..." Blake said but Gwen knew he was deep in thought too

"What's up babe?"

"Gwen you are Catholic, our babies are being baptized in a Catholic church. I know how much your religion means to you. I have never been super religious. Yes I was baptized when I was a kid but you know I have questioned my faith before. This isn't going like I thought it would. What I am trying to say is...I would do anything for you. So...I was thinking...what if after my next few shows, when I have some down time; what if I convert to Catholicism so we can all go to the same church" Blake said....more a question than a statement. His eyes weary because he didn't know what Gwen's response would be.

Gwen turned into Blake and looked up "Babe...are you serious?"

"I have thought about this a lot since we decided to baptize the kids. I even spoke to my mom about it because I didn't want to offend her by converting to another religion since she is the one who had me baptized. She was all for it. I just want us to be a family in everything."

"Wow Blake...I am speechless" she says as she tip toes up to kiss him. She makes sure the passion and love she feels for him is in that kiss. She is so in awe of his selflessness.

"Okay Sunshine...we can hammer out those details later...right now let's get ready, get our babies ready, and go get them baptized."

As everyone is finished getting ready Blake calls to Gwen from the living room "Baby...the car is here...you ready?"

Gwen comes running down the hallway "I'm ready...I'm ready."

They all head to the car to make their way to the church. When they pull up to the church they are the first to arrive. Gwen and Blake take the kids inside to get them situated while everyone else files in.

Luke and Caroline; Jen and Todd have arrived with the rest of the family. Chuck and Viv are already sitting in the pews and Justine is right next to them. Gwen waves and mouths a thank you to her extended family. She couldn't have asked for better friends and family.

The priest comes to the front to being the ceremony. The photographer was getting a plethora of pictures to commemorate the day. Gwen had made a dress for Lena; a white sundress with all white flowers embroidered on the bodice of the dress and a matching flower headband. Jackson was in a little white linen shirt with matching pants. A mini version of something similar to what Blake had worn at their wedding. Blake and Gwen matched the kids today. 

The priest begins the ceremony:

"Good Morning Blake and Gwen...are you willing to raise Lena Renee and Jackson Tollison as Christians?"

"Yes we are" the couple replies

"I claim you for Christ our Savior by the sign of his cross."

The priest then uses is hand to make the sign of the cross over both Lena and Jackson. He then proceeds to read a portion of Luke Chapter 18 to symbolize the occasion.

The priest then speaks to Gwen, Blake, Jen, Todd, Luke, and Caroline.

 

"Do you believe in God?"

They all answer "I do"

"Do you believe in Jesus Christ, the son of God?"

"I do"

"Do you believe in the holy spirit?"

"I do"

The priest then pours holy water over Lena three times while saying "Lena Renee Shelton, I baptize you in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit"

He then turns to Gwen who is holding Jackson and pours the water over his forehead three times and says "Jackson Tollison Shelton, I baptize you in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit"

The priest shakes the hands of the Godparents and the couple and they make their way down the church aisle and out the doors. Everyone meets them outside to offer their congratulations to all involved.

Dot comes up to Gwen first while Patti and Dennis are chatting with Blake "Gwen that was beautiful. Thank you again for including us in this day."

"Aww Dot there is no way you guys wouldn't be involved. You and Mike and the rest of the family are way too important to Blake and me" Gwen said embracing her mother-in-law in a hug.

Patti, at the same time, was pulling Blake into a hug "Blake...Dennis and I can never repay you for giving us our daughter back. Without you we may have never seen her again. I hope you know just how much we appreciate you and all you have done for her and given her. You saved her and made her happier than either of us has ever seen her. Thank you son!"

"Patti, Dennis....it is my pleasure. You seriously need to stop thanking me. Gwen saved me as much as I did her. I wouldn't be here without her either. I thank God every day that I have her, the kids, and all of you."

"Well the feeling is mutual son" Dennis adds

Before making his way to Gwen he decides to tell his in-laws his news "by the way...I wanted to let you know that I spoke to Gwen, after discussing this matter with my mom, and I have decided to convert to Catholicism so we can all attend church together with the kids. I just thought it would be something important to Gwen."

Patti is taken aback "Oh my goodness Blake. I am sure she is ecstatic. What a beautiful gift to give her. We look forward to having you at Church with us more in the near future. Now I believe your wife is calling you" Patti says before hugging him one last time.

He makes his way to Gwen who is chatting with Chuck and Viv "Chuck my man...I have been meaning to call you." Blake says. "I wanted to thank you again for getting me that meeting with Jake. I don't know how you did it but without you we wouldn't be here right now. I will never be able to repay that debt to you. Thank you man!"

Chuck shakes Blake's hand "Blake seeing Gwen happy and healthy is all the thanks I need. By the way...beautiful ceremony in there."

"Thanks man...that was all Gwen and Justine" Blake replies

He takes Gwen's hand in his "Well Sunshine...you ready to head to the house to change so we can get to Jen's house for the party?"

"Yeah babe...let's get going" She then turns to Chuck and Viv and says her goodbyes.

"We will see you in a bit okay. Thank you so much for joining us today" she tells Chuck hugging him before they depart.

"Let's go Cowboy!"

"Yeah daddy...let's go...Jackson is hungry and so am I!"

"Okay...let's go...no hungry princes and princesses allowed!"

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"After they had left the church Blake, Gwen, and the kids made their way to their house to change out of their dressy attire and into more appropriate party attire before heading to Jen's house. When they arrived most of the party guests were already there and out back. Blake went to help the men work the grill and Lena took off to play with her cousins. Gwen watched as the kids all play together, she was already amazed at how well the four got along. She was so happy that Lena had cousins her age and she put it in the back of her mind to nag Jen and Endy about having more kids so Jackson would have cousins his age to play with. 

"It's nice to see them play together isn't it?" Dot asks startling Gwen who jumped slightly, holding Jackson. 

"Yeah it is. It's a sight I thought I was never going have. I feel so blessed to have such an amazing blended family." Gwen says

"Yeah it's a beautiful thing. I stand here and stare at Blake and the huge smile he has on his face and could just cry." Dot says as tears fill her eyes. "You did that; you put that smile there, you and your beautiful kids. So thank you!" Dot tells her as a single tear runs down her face.

"No thanks needed. He is an amazing man, husband, and father. I'm the lucky one to get to share this life with him." Gwen gave Dot a hug before she and Jackson make their way over to Blake. 

"Hey how is my sunshine and little man?"

"Good. He is almost asleep which is good cause he can sleep while we eat." 

"The meat should be done in about fifteen minutes if you want to tell the rest of the women. Let me take little man so you can help them finish up." 

"Thanks babe. I love you." She says leaning in for a kiss.

"I love you to sunshine..... Always." 

"Always."

With that she gives Jackson to Blake and heads to help the rest of the women in the kitchen. They all bring the food out to the big outdoor table. Everyone sat down and you could tell food was being eaten as it was quiet. 

After they eat Jackson's cry comes through the baby monitor. Gwen goes and feeds him before bringing him down so they can open the tons of presents they got, even though the invite said no gifts. They open their gifts from Blake and Gwen first. 

"Mommy it's a blanket!! I love blankets! Thank you!"

"You're welcome baby. Did you see it has your name and birth date on it?" 

"That's so cool mommy." 

"Now you get your presents from us." Luke pipes up taking the presents he and Caroline had gotten for Lena and handed them to her.

"What do you say Lena?" Gwen asked as Lena took the presents from him.

"Thanks uncle Luke and aunt Caroline." 

"You're welcome Nae." 

She opens the small box first and finds a beautiful cross necklace with her initials on it as well as her baptism date on it.

"Look mommy, daddy it's beautiful! Can I wear it mommy?" 

"Of course baby." Gwen says helping her place the necklace around her neck.

Next she opened a pink teddy bear that matched her blanket with her initials, birth date, and a cross embroidered on its belly. 

"I love it aunt Caroline and uncle Luke! Thank you so much for my presents!" She said running to them and straight into their open arms. Gwen opens Jackson's gifts from Todd and Jen. They got him an ornate silver music box with his full name and birth date engraved on it. He also got a stuffed lamb with his initials, birth date, and cross embroidered on its belly.  
.................................................  
That night Gwen and Blake were tucking Lena in bed. 

"Princess what do you think about going to the aquarium tomorrow?" Blake asked Lena 

"Yeah daddy! I want to see all the fish! Will they have Nemo? And Dory? What about Bruce?" Lena asked all excited!

"Yeah I think they will have all of them princess." Blake chuckles.

"Baby since Mawmaw is here, would you like it if Jackson stayed with her and it just be you, daddy, and I?" Gwen asks

"You mean no baby brother?!? Just us?"

"Yeah baby. Just us." 

"Yes mommy! Please!" 

"Ok baby. It will be Lena day!" Gwen says both girls clapping.

"Time for sleep now princess so you can be rested for tomorrow." Blake says.

"Ok. Night mommy. Night daddy. Love you." 

"Love you too baby girl." Gwen says.

"Love you princess." Blake says.

They leave Lena tucked in and peek in on Jackson one more time before heading down stairs to talk to Mike and Dot about keeping Jackson. Blake crashed into the recliner, while his mom and step dad were sitting on the couch. Mike and Endy had already gone up to bed, the time change still effecting them. 

"So mom would you and Mike be able to watch Jackson tomorrow? We want to take Lena to the aquarium just the three of us while we have the help." Blake asks 

"Of course we will! I think it's a great idea to take her out just the three of you!" 

"Yeah we haven't done it since Jackson was born. It's over due for sure. She has been so good with him. She is always helping me with him." Gwen chimes in.

"It is no problem at all. Y'all enjoy the day tomorrow and we will keep Jackson for you. With that said we are heading up to bed. Y'all have a good night and thank you for making sure we were here today for the baptism. Goodnight!" Dot adds

"Goodnight Mom...Night Mike" Blake says.

"Goodnight Dot, Night Mike" Gwen adds.  
.......................................................  
"Mommy! Mommy! Mommy!" Lena says patting Gwen's cheeks. 

"Lena?" Gwen moans. "What's wrong?"

"It's morning mommy! The sun is up! Time to go to the aquarium!" Lena yelled with so much excitement. 

"Baby its too early for the aquarium." Gwen says sitting up seeing its only seven am then looking at the video baby monitor seeing that Jackson is still asleep. "Lena baby it's too early to be up either you need to go...."

"Gwen what's going on?" A groggy Blake asks.

"Your daughter is up; ready to go to the aquarium." 

Blake starts to get up but Gwen grabs his arm.

"Babe it's too early what are you doing?" 

"Might as well get up. She isn't going back to sleep." 

"Daddy can we go to the aquarium now?" Lena asks

"Princess the aquarium isn't open yet. How about we go make your favorite breakfast?" 

"Pancakes?" Lena said with excitement.

"Yep!"

"Yay!" 

They all headed down stairs to get breakfast going.


	16. Roller Coasters and Recovery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hope you like it, only four left!!

"Mommy are we gonna see Sharks?" 

Gwen will never get over the fact that this little girl calls her mommy. It still amazes her how God brought this tiny little girl into their lives. Just knowing they were able to take this precious little one into their family and show her the love she deserves is something Gwen will never fully get over. 

"Yeah baby I'm sure there will be some sharks there." Gwen answers. 

"I'm so excited mommy!" 

"I'm glad your happy baby." 

Gwen reaches over the center console grabbing Blake's free hand and intertwining their fingers. This is the life Gwen had always dreamed of. A husband that she didn't ever doubt loved her and their kids. Gwen is pulled out of her thoughts as Lena yells....

"THAT'S DADDY SINGING!!"

Sure enough it was Blake's current single being blasted through the speakers. Gwen looked at Blake. He had the biggest smile on his face. 

"I'm so proud of you Blakee! I'm one lucky woman to be married to country music's best new artist!" 

"No sunshine I'm the lucky one. Married to the strongest most beautiful woman I know, who I get to see and help raise our kids."   
............................................................  
Lena loved the aquarium. She was pulling Blake and Gwen from tank to tank wanting to know what each fish was called. They laughed at their daughter's enthusiasm, as she was in total amazement of all the different kinds of fish. When they reached the tank where the sharks were Lena was totally blown away. The shark tank was a huge tank with a viewing tunnel. You could walk through the tunnel and you had sharks and fish swimming all around you. Gwen and Blake ended up sitting on a bench while Lena was totally engrossed in the majestic animals. Today had been great. No one had recognized Blake the whole day. That's the one part of his new found fame that neither he nor Gwen liked.

"Daddy what's that shark called?" 

"That's a tiger shark princess." 

"I like that one!" 

Lena ran back up to the tank watching the tiger shark. Gwen sat on the bench cuddled into Blake watching their daughter as content as possible. 

"I feel like I won the lottery." Blake mused and Gwen laughed.

"Why is that?" She asked deciding to be a bit playful. 

"My whole life right now is everything I had always dreamed it would be. I have you, the kids, our families, and my music. I couldn't possibly ask for more. I have everything."   
When he turns his gaze back to Gwen he sees the tears in her eyes. "Gwen? Baby, don't cry! Why are you crying?" 

"I love you so much!" She said as a few tears spilled out and down her cheeks.

Blake pulled her even closer to him and placed a kiss on her forehead. When he looked up his heart stopped. He is standing instantly looking all around the tunnel panic setting in. Gwen is about to ask him what the matter is, when her eyes scan to the last place Lena had been but she wasn't there. Gwen's breath left her lungs as she to stood in a panic. 

"Blake do you see her?" 

"No...shit! Where did she go? I only looked away for a second." 

"Oh my gosh Blake. What if someone took her?" Tears instantly running down her face.

Blake takes off to exit the tunnel into the touch exhibit. Gwen follows right behind him, both frantically scanning the room. Neither finding Lena. They are both about to totally lose it. What if someone really did take her? 

"Blake you don't think her biological grandmother came and took her do you?" The fear and total devastation lacing her voice makes him stop for a second and be the rock he has promised to always be for her. 

He pulls her in close wrapping his arms around her tight.

"Lena would have screamed if a stranger had grabbed her. You and I both know how she gets with strangers. Let's go backwards. Maybe she went back to look at one of the tanks again." 

They run back over their path but can't seem to find her anywhere. It's just as they are about to inform one of the aquarium workers for help, that Blake sees Gwen take off. When he looks toward the direction she is running, he takes off as well. There is Lena standing in front of the seahorse tank watching them swim among the seaweed. When Gwen reaches Lena she instantly scoops her up into her arms hugging her tight against her chest.

"Mommy I was looking at the seahorsies." She says with attitude until she realizes Gwen is crying.

By then Blake reaches them wrapping both in his arms. Lena notices he to has tears in his eyes.

"Mommy, daddy what's wrong? Why are you crying?" 

They set Lena back down to stand and kneel down in front of her so they can look her in the eyes and she can do the same. 

"Lena don't you ever do that again! You are to stay with mommy and daddy!" Gwen reprimands.

"You can't run off like that Lena! You scared mommy and daddy!" Blake says sternly.

"I just.....I jus..." she breaks down crying hysterically and for a split second shies away from them before falling into Gwen's open arms.

It's in that split second that Blake and Gwen realize that she still has scars from her past. Ones she doesn't even realize she has. It's at this realization that Gwen picks her back up, comforting her and rubbing her back trying to calm her. They walk over to a bench and sit down. Lena has her head buried in Gwen's neck, while Gwen holds her and Blake rubs her back. 

"Lena, princess, it's ok. You just scared mommy and I cause we didn't know where you were. We don't want anything bad to happen to you princess." Blake tells her as her tears begin to subside. 

"We love you baby. We want you to be safe. We are sorry we yelled and scared you but daddy and I thought we lost you." 

Lena finally pulls back her blue eyes puffy and red from crying. 

"I'm sorry mommy and daddy. I won't do that again. I stay with you." They exchange a family hug, Gwen and Blake cherishing the feel of their baby in their arms. 

"Do you want to look at the seahorses some more or do you want to keep going?" Gwen asked Lena.

"I want to go home."

"You don't want to keep going and see everything princess ?" Blake tries.

"No I just want to go home." Lena says.

"Ok well how about we stop at the gift shop and get you a stuffed animal?" Blake asks smiling at Lena knowing how much she loves stuffed animals. 

Lena's face lifts and a small smile spreads across her face. "Yes please!"

They start making their way to the gift shop with Gwen holding Lena's hand.

"Daddy will you hold me?" 

"Absolutely princess. Come here." 

Blake carries her the rest of the way with her head resting on his shoulder. Suddenly her head pops up.

"Mommy!"

"What baby?" 

"Can we get Jackson a stuffed animal too? I don't want him to be sad if I have one and he doesn't." 

"Aww baby that's so sweet of you to think about your brother like that. You're a great big sister you know that? We can definitely get him one to. Can you pick it out for him?" 

"Yeah we can get him a tiger shark! I want a seahorse!" 

They make it to the gift shop and Lena picks out two stuffed animals. A tiger shark for Jackson and a seahorse for her. They make their way home and the first thing Lena does when they walk in the door, is run to find Jackson to give him is shark.

"Jackson look! We got you a shark! This one is called a tiger shark! Isn't it so cool?" 

Everyone's heart melts watching the exchange and seeing the love Lena has for her brother. Gwen finds tears I her eyes again as she thinks of Todd and herself. She is glad Lena and Jackson are going to have that experience of growing up best friends with their sibling.  
\------------------------------------------  
Blake had taken his mom and sister to their airport early the next morning. They both had to get back to Oklahoma. Gwen stayed home with the kids and worked on some sketches for Chuck. They were working on some new lines and she was in charge of the design team. When Blake got back Gwen noticed he was on the phone when he walked in. He walked over to his wife and kissed her on her temple while signaling to her to give him a minute and he would be done. When he got off the phone all she heard was...

"Okay great...thank you so much. We will see you then!"

Blake went to sit next to Gwen on the couch "what are you doing up baby?"

"I couldn't fall back asleep after you left so I spent some time sketching and had just come to the kitchen when I heard you coming in."

Gwen snuggled into Blake's side and he held her tight. "So cowboy who were you on the phone with? You winning more awards or something?"

"Nope not yet" he said chuckling confidently "no I was on the phone with your mom" he added as he turned on the t.v. 

"My mom? Why were you calling my mom so early?"

"Well it has been a while since we have had some time to ourselves and I wanted to ask if she would mind watching the kids tomorrow night so I could take you out!"

"Really Blakee?" she asked "Where are we going?"

"Oh it's a surprise" he replied getting up from the couch and sneaking off to the bedroom; hoping she would follow.

"Blakee....that's not fair...don't do that....where are we going?"

"Uh uh...not til tomorrow sunshine...now how about we spend the day in the pool with the kids...it is heated after all?"

"Okay babe...sounds like a plan."

The family spends the day splashing around in the pool off and on until both of the kids are thoroughly exhausted. Right before they tuck them in bed they tell Lena she will be spending the day and night with her Nona tomorrow and she tells her mom and dad that she will be a great big sister and help with Jackson. After they tuck the kids into bed Blake gives Gwen a small hint as to what their day will entail. 

"Okay baby...tomorrow is pretty casual okay. You don't have to get all dolled up like you usually do...unless you want to. Be ready for some fun okay?"

"Okay babe...I am ready. For now though...I am wiped...let's get some rest."

"God we are getting old baby...goodnight...I love you. ALWAYS!" Blake says kissing his wife goodnight.

"I love you too babe...ALWAYS!"  
\--------------------------------------------------------  
When the couple woke the next morning and got dressed Gwen was anxious. She didn't know what to expect from her husband when it came to surprises. He wasn't a big city guy so he usually felt like a fish out of water but he always put on a brave face for her.

"Gwen baby come on we need to get the kids to your mom's...we have an appointment in an hour" he hollered to his wife down the hall.

"Coming babe!" she replied with Jackson in tow. Lena was following close behind with the overnight bag in tow.

Blake smiled as he thought to himself "yeah you will be coming....if I have anything to say about it."

When Gwen met him at the door he had a shit eating grin on his face...dimples in full force.

"What are you smiling about?"

"Oh nothing...."

She trailed her hand along his cheek and down his face as he opened the door for her so she could go to the car. She could tell he was up to something but knew not to ask because she'd find out soon enough.

About thirty minutes later they dropped the kids off, said their goodbyes and headed to their first stop. Gwen's jaw dropped.

"Oh my God Blake...are you serious?"

"Why yes...yes I am" he replied "we have a couples massage at this spa in about 5 minutes" he added.

"Babe this is expensive. All of the A list celebrities come here. Matter of fact their website talks about Jessica Alba visiting with her husband."

"Well then I guess I chose well didn't I? Now come on we're going to be late!" He took his wife's hand and led her inside. They were taken to a private suite where they enjoyed an hour long massage that both commented was the most relaxing thing they have ever done. When they left Blake told Gwen it was time for part two of the day.

They pulled up to a dance studio. Gwen didn't understand this one. She looked at her husband with question in her eyes.

"I know what you're thinking....why are we here of all places if I suck at dancing?" 

"Well...yeah sort of" she said laughing

"That is exactly why baby...I want to learn for you. I want to be able to do more than sway back and forth like middle school kids" he said seriously.

When they went inside they were greeted by an instructor. "Good afternoon...welcome. Today we will learn the dance of love...the tango!" As the hour progressed Gwen was amazed at how well Blake was doing. He stepped on her toes a couple times but he was getting good at this now and hell if he wasn't sexy as hell when he danced with her.

By the time the lesson was done Blake owned the dance floor. Gwen was so proud of him. "Babe...wow...you did so well. You caught on fast! That was so much fun...thank you for doing this with me!"

"Anything for you...now come on darlin' I am starving and there is a sushi restaurant with our name on it."

The couple dined in a very private booth of Nobu Los Angeles. Blake didn't eat sushi much but ever since meeting Gwen he found himself branching out and trying different foods. He made sure they had the best items on the menu. He knew exactly what Gwen liked and made sure there was plenty of it. They talked over dinner making plans for upcoming holidays and concerts that were coming up. Gwen talked to her husband about the conversation Chuck had with her recently. He had told her he wanted to make her a partner. This next set of designs would decide if she was ready for it and Blake reassured her that he had no doubt she was. When they finished their meals he took her hand and led her to the car. As they made their way home and up their driveway Gwen placed her hand on Blake's leg.

"Umm babe...why does it look like the pool area is on fire?"

"Oh no worries...just wait" he said. He got out of the car and led her to the backyard. It was there that she saw the tiki torches lighting the pool area. A private cabana had been set up with a fire lamp inside for heat. Blankets created a soft area for the couple inside and their was champagne and chocolate covered strawberries inside.

"Blake how have you made all of this happen today? When did you find the time? You have been so busy?"

"Don't you worry about that. I had a little help from some friends."

They went inside and Blake helped Gwen to the ground. 

"Champagne?"

"Please!"

He grabbed the glasses and bottle and poured them both a glass. Gwen was laying on her side when Blake joined her facing her. He fed her a strawberry right after she had a drink. They shared kisses after each strawberry...both tasting like a mix of champagne and fruit. Gwen looked into Blake's eyes and she knew exactly what was coming next.

"Gwen...baby...you are do beautiful...do you know that?"

"Thank you babe...you tell me that a lot."

"No Gwen...seriously...I know I tell you all of the time..but baby hear me when I say this" he said caressing her cheek and looking deep into her eyes "you are the most beautiful woman in the world and I am the luckiest man alive to have you as my wife." Blake couldn't hold back anymore. He took the hem of her shirt in his hands and lifted it over her head. He unclasped her blue lingerie from the back and slid his hand back over her breasts. Damn his wife was gorgeous. He would never get enough of her. Just the thought of her had him so aroused he was afraid he wouldn't last.

While he paid close attention to her breast with his mouth his hands helped remove her pants and underwear (matching of course). When he trailed his hand back up her thigh he paused at her center. 

"Holy shit Gwen...you are so wet!"

"Only for you babe...Always for you!"

He moved his fingers through her folds coating them easily. When he plunged two into her she gasped. 

"Blake...babe...you are overdressed."

She used that as her excuse to concentrate and not let go too quickly. She wanted this to last so she removed his shirt first running her hands over his broad chest admiring his chest hair. She had never liked it on me until Blake. Now she thought it was hot....manly. She ran her hand down his pants and rubbed against his hardened member.

"Gwen baby stop or this will end quickly" Blake demanded.

She stopped long enough to remove his pants and free him from the constraint. She lowered his boxer briefs and moved her hand back up to where she wanted it. She pumped him to the rhythm he created while stroking her. Before she knew it her limbs were trembling.

"Let go Gwen...let go baby...I've got you" Blake told her.

That was all it took. Gwen experienced an earth shattering orgasm just from his hands. How the hell did he do that.

"Fuck Blake...how do you do that to me every time?"

"Easy baby...I have studied you...I have memorized everything that makes you tick. I know every spot on your body that heightens your experience. I do it so I can please you every time. That is what matters to me."

"Well your pleasure matters to and right now what would please me is you being inside me Cowboy!"

"Your wish is my command gorgeous!" Blake exclaims right before he enters her without warning. 

She is breathless again. "Oh god Blake...you feel so good!"

"You okay baby? I'm not hurting you am I with my big self?"

"No babe...you aren't...don't stop.."

Blake pushed into her further while lifting her leg to his shoulder. The angle allowed him to hit the spot that drove her wild...deep inside of her. He knew he had hit it when she cried out...

"Awww shit Blake...right there baby...harder babe!"

Blake thrust into her harder just like she asked. He could feel himself getting harder by the second. What this woman did to him was insane. No one has ever or would ever make him feel the way she did. 

"Gwen...baby are you close?"

"Oh my God babe...yes...yes...I am so close...but I don't want to cum without you!"

"I am right there with you baby...shit Gwen...you feel amazing!"

"Faster babe...faster...I am so close...so close..." and then she feels it coming. That feeling she gets when the warmth overcomes her, he body starts to tremble, and her heart is racing. She is going to explode.

"AAHHHHHHHHHHHH Blake! Ahhh shit babe! I'm cumming babe....don't stop...don't stop!" she exclaimed as she clenched around her husband.

The minute her muscles contracted he was gone..

"Ahhh fuck baby...holy shit Gwen...that's it baby...I am right there with you....I've got you...do you feel me?"

"Oh god yes...I feel you babe...let go!"

Blake thrust into her one more time and spilled his seed inside of her. There was nothing more beautiful than watching his wife climax and nothing more peaceful than being able to lie with her afterwards in post-coital bliss. Blake rolled onto his back and Gwen rolled onto him...her favorite spot on his chest always there for her. 

Gwen would never get over how lucky she was to have this man in her life. He gave her the love she needed, the family she wanted, and the passion she desired. Before she felt her eyes closing she thanked him again for an amazing day.

"Babe...today and tonight..were amazing. I don't know how you managed it but this was by far the best date I have ever had. You spoil me! I love you...ALWAYS!"

"I love you too baby! ALWAYS!" He pulled the blanket up over them and he caressed her back. He reminded her again just how lucky he felt and as he felt her weary eyes fading he began to lull her to sleep with his voice and her favorite song...reminding her that "God Gave Me You"!


	17. Showtime

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delayed update. I was out of town for a military event and my adoptive child/ co author patiently waited for me to find time to write. We hope you are still enjoying the story. Only a few more chapters to go... but don't fret we have a few storylines in the works. Thanks y'all for your continued support. Kudos and comments are like caffeine... addictive.

Blake was sitting on one of the lounge chairs out back, reading emails on his phone. Gwen was sitting in his lap watching Lena play on the jungle gym they had just gotten. Jackson was napping in his crib and Gwen had the video monitor sitting beside them on the little table. 

"Hey sunshine." 

"Hmmm." Gwen responded 

"Don't forget I have a show at the forum this weekend. I won't have to be gone thankfully since it's right here." 

"I want to come. Maybe Jen can watch the kids for us."

"Oh my gosh baby can we ask her? I love when you're at my shows!" 

"Show? Daddy do you have to go away again?" Lena asks as she walks up to Blake and Gwen.

This breaks Blake's heart. He knows how hard it is on them being away, but he tries not to think about the impact it had on the kids and his wife.

"No princess, not this time. My show is here this time so I won't have to travel far away this time." 

"It's here? Lena asks and Blake nods in response. "Can I come see you sing daddy?!? Please!?!?!?" 

"I don't know baby. It's a late night and I don't want you getting bored and being loud." Gwen says

"I promise to be good mommy! I'll be so quiet you won't even know I'm there!"

"What do you think daddy?" Gwen asks.

"I would really like to have the whole family there. However, I'm not the one who is going to have to deal with them. So I'm gonna leave that up to you sunshine." 

"Well Lena if we say you can go, you have to be quiet and listen to me. No running off. No throwing fits." 

"I promise mommy I'll be the best little girl ever!"

"Ok you can come but if you start acting up we will leave. This is daddy's work so we have to be quiet and let him do what he needs to do." 

"I promise mommy! Thank you! Thank you mommy!" Lena says so excited she is literally jumping up and down. She then turns to Blake. "Daddy did you hear?!?! I get to come! Mommy said yes!" 

"Yeah I'm excited princess! Thanks sunshine it really does mean a lot to have all of you there." 

"Always babe. We are always here to support you!" Gwen says leaning in to kiss him while Lena runs back to her jungle gym.

About that time they heard Jackson's cry from the monitor. 

"Little man is awake. Why don't I go up and get him and a bottle while you watch Lena?" 

"That would be great babe! Thank you!"   
..........................................................  
That night they decided to go out to eat. Lena had been very good all day and had asked to go out and get ice cream. So they decide to do dinner and ice cream out. They went to Gwen's favorite place to eat dinner, Mama Cozza's. When the waitress came to the table, she gushed over how cute the kids are which only made Gwen and Blake's hearts swell knowing the road they had to take to get to that moment.

"They are just the most adorable kids. Your little boy looks like the perfect mix of the two of you. Absolutely adorable." The waitress tells them before taking their orders and head off to the kitchen. 

After the waitress left Gwen and Blake both noticed that Lena was being extra quiet.

"Lena you ok baby?" Gwen asks knowing something is bothering her.

"Mommy you know how everyone says Jackson looks so much like you and daddy?"

"Yeah." 

"How come I don't look like you and daddy?"

Gwen's eyes widened at her daughter's question. Of course they know this discussion was going to happen one day but Gwen was taken aback by the suddenness of the question. Blake's hand came across the table and Gwen immediately took it.

"Princess you know how mommy can't have babies in her belly like other mommies?" 

"Yeah that's why Jackson was in Aunt Jen's belly." 

"Right princess. Mommy and I weren't sure if we could have babies that looked like us because of that. One night while mommy and I were at the ranch house a big loud storm came through. Betty heard something outside and it was you." Blake tried to explain the best he could. 

"Me? Why was I outside?" 

"Well baby the mommy and daddy you came from were hurt in the storm. They weren't there to take care of you anymore." Gwen said holding strong.

"Are they going to come back? Are they gonna come take me away?" 

"No princess absolutely not. Mommy and I adopted you, making you our daughter forever. We knew when we saw you that God meant for you to be our little girl." Blake tried to explain.

"So you are Jackson's mommy and daddy but not mine?" 

Gwen let go of Blake's hand and pulled Lena into her lap wrapping her arms around the little girl.

"No Lena absolutely not. I am your mommy. I love you so much baby!" Tears were now running down Lena and Gwen's faces as well as Blake's. 

Blake got up and walked around the table taking Lena's seat since she was now in Gwen's lap. He pulled both of his girls onto his embrace. 

"I'm your daddy Lena and you are my princess. I love you so much!" 

"Jackson is still my brother right?"

"Yes princess of course he is princess!" Gwen replies 

" I love you mommy and daddy! And Jackson, I love my brother too!"  
...........................................................  
That night Gwen and Blake made it a point to include Lena in putting Jackson to bed. They wanted to make sure they could both put her to bed to make sure she was ok. They aren't sure how much she understands and they want to make sure she knows that she is theirs forever and that they love her so much. They don't want her to have any fears or worries. The three of them make their way into Lena's room after making sure Jackson was asleep. Lena stops before getting in bed turning to them with tears in her eyes. 

"Can I sleep in your bed tonight, please?" Tears spilling down her cheeks. 

Without even talking about it Blake walks up to her, picking her up and taking her to their room. Gwen followed behind smiling at the fatherly display Blake just put on. 

"Lena baby are you ok? Do you have any questions for us?" 

"I get to stay with you forever right?" 

"Yes princess forever." Blake said. 

"Then I'm ok. You're my mommy and daddy and I'm staying here forever!"

"That's absolutely right princess." Blake reassured her

The three of them cuddle together and Lena is asleep in minuets. 

"Gwen baby are you ok?" Blake asks in a whisper.

"Yeah I just wish this wasn't something she had to go through."

"I know baby but we will get through this just like everything else we have been through."   
\--------------------------------------  
Friday came quickly. Blake and Gwen had made arrangements for Jackson to stay with Jen and Todd; which was an easy task because Jen jumped at the chance to watch her nephew/godson. They definitely had a special bond. Gwen and Blake were so thankful that they had family nearby so that Gwen and Lena could attend the show. When they dropped Jackson off at Jen and Todd's, Jen asked if they wanted to just let Jackson stay the night with them since he was now sleeping through the night. They agreed mainly because it would be a very late night.

Gwen said goodbye to Todd and turned to Jen before leaving "okay so he will probably take his last bottle around 10 o'clock and he should sleep through the night. Everything you might need is in the diaper bag including extra clothes. Just call if you need anything because I won't be that far away."

"We will be just fine. Jackson and I will be chilling watching Disney shows" Jen replied as Gwen handed her son over to her sister-in-law.

"Thanks again you guys. Lena is very excited to see her daddy sing tonight. I will be over after we wake in the morning. We will bring some breakfast!"

"Sounds good sis...you all enjoy your evening. Knock em' dead Blake" Todd replied.

As the couple made their way to the venue Lena was getting antsy. "Mommy, Mommy....look, look" she said pointing to the huge, lighted marquee sign. "That's my daddy!"

"Yes baby girl that is your daddy" Blake replies smiling.

They parked the SUV and made their way into the building. Blake went to the dressing room to set some stuff down and get Gwen and Lena situated so he could get ready for sound check. He made his way to the stage and started playing his first song. Lena heard the guitar from the dressing room and ran to her mom.

"Mommy is that daddy playing?"

"Yes baby it is. He is testing the guitar and microphone with his band."

"Can we go watch please?"

"Sure baby. We just have to stay out of the way."

Gwen took Lena's hand and lead the excited girl to the side of the stage so they weren't in the way. She points to Blake and tells her daughter "see...there's your daddy princess."

"Mommy...daddy sounds awesome!" Lena claps for Blake as he ends the song and yells "good job daddy!"

Blake snaps his head in their direction and the biggest smile comes across his face. His dimples on full display showing everyone at the sound check how happy he is to have his wife and daughter at this show. He waves to Lena and then to Gwen. Gwen mouths "sorry babe" to him and he just smiles and shakes his head while mouthing back "no worries babe!"

When his sound check is over he gets his wife's attention via his mic. "Hey gorgeous...you lookin' for a date?"

She throws her head back in laughter "naw...thanks...I already have a date."

"Come on darlin' I'll be a gentleman...tell your date you changed your mind" Blake says waving her up to the stage.

Gwen takes Lena's hand and makes her way to the stage. When Lena gets up there she runs to her dad.

"Daddy, daddy...that was so cool!"

Blake picks her up in his arms "thank you princess...I'm glad you liked it!"

Gwen walks over to her husband and he leans down to give her a kiss. 

"Hey now...I already told you I have a date" she says sarcastically.

"Who is this guy you are here with? I need to talk to him."

Gwen smiles at him as she responds "he's like 6'5", salt and pepper hair, full beard, and eyes as blue as the ocean! He's so handsome."

"Huh...sounds like a guy I know. He have a thick southern twang?"

"Sure does...you know him?"

"I think I do and he is so lucky to have you in his life" Blake says leaning down to give her a kiss. "I am done here babe...let's go to the dressing room and get some food and relax before it is my turn on stage.

A few hours later it is his turn on stage. Gwen and Lena are on the side of the stage; headphones over their daughter's ears so she doesn't hurt her little ear drums. The lights go down and the song starts to play. Ole' Red is one of the hit singles off of his album that Lena likes. She tells her dad it's because the song is about dogs....probably a good thing she doesn't know the true meaning behind the lyrics Gwen thinks to herself.

Lena and dancing next to Gwen and singing along to her dad's songs. She is having the time of her life. Gwen is taking videos of their daughter and her husband so much she is killing her phone battery but she can't bother to care. She is watching her man in his element and she can't help but think of how HOT he is on stage.

When the show ends Blake does an encore song and heads off the stage in his wife's direction. He grabs the towel from the roadie and wipes the sweat off his brow. Lena runs to her dad and jumps into his arms.

Blake laughs because she is yelling when she says "Wow Daddy...that was so cool!"

"Thank you princess...did you have fun?"

Lena shakes her head over and over again to get her point across "yeah daddy yeah!"

Blake goes to his wife and pulls her close to him and lays a gentle kiss on her temple.

"Come on Sunshine....let's get out of here."

The family makes their way to the car to head home. The police escort them out of the venue and they are on their way. It only takes about 5 minutes for Lena to be knocked out in her seat. Gwen plugs her phone in so she can check in with Jen. When she is reassured that Jackson is okay she sets her phone down and takes her husband's hand in hers.

Blake turns to look at her momentarily "what's up baby?"

"Do you know how HOT you look on that stage?"

"Aww you're just saying that because you are my wife" he says suddenly shy

"Babe...seriously..wife or not...holy cow...HOT...H-O-T!"

"Well thank you baby. What do you think we should do about that?"

"Well I say when we put her to sleep we take the monitor and go outside by the fire lamps by the pool! What do you think?"

"I think you add some vodka and Sprite and some wine for you and it sounds like the perfect way to unwind."

"It's a date...but don't tell my other date...he might get mad!"

"Baby...you just wait...what I have planned for you will make you forget about anyone but me!"

"Oh I can't wait....!"

Blake kisses her hand and steps on the gas. He can't wait any longer...he has to get her home now!


	18. Family First

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Okay folks...only 2 more chapters to go but don't worry we have a couple more stories in the works. We hope you are still enjoying the final installment of the trilogy. Kudos and Comments are like Starbucks and Monster drinks for us! Much love!

Five years later:

Gwen and Blake wake to the sound of the alarm clock going off. It's 6am. Today is the first day of school after summer break. They are sad to see their summer gone already. The whole family enjoys their time in Oklahoma. It's their break from all the cameras and the latest gossip about their marriage and family. It never ceases to amaze them, the stories the tabloids come up with. Gwen thinks back remembering the one that really bothered her that was printed last year. They printed pictures of Blake with different girls and titled the article MARRIAGE ON THE ROCKS: BLAKE CHEATS MORE THAN ONCE. Blake had ended up calling his manager Brandon, to see if there was anything they could do to get it pulled off the shelves, while he held a shaken and crying Gwen. Lena had even come home from 2nd grade asking, why mommy and daddy were fighting. Gwen snaps out of her trip down memory lane as Blake pulls her in for a good morning kiss. They get up getting dressed and ready to take the kids to school. Lena was going to be in the 3rd grade and Jackson was going to his first day of kindergarten. Gwen could cry thinking about how her baby was already in kindergartner. Where did the time go? 

"Jackson buddy, time to get up for your first day of school." Gwen said rubbing his head 

"Morning mommy. I get to go to school today?" He asked beyond excited 

"Yeah buddy. Daddy and I are gonna take you."

"Yay!!!" Jackson cheered hurrying to get up

Gwen got Jackson ready while Blake got a less excited Lena up and ready. Gwen did Lena's hair while the kids ate their breakfast. The kids had brand new outfits for the first day. Lena had helped pick hers out and was very proud of it, so was Gwen coming from a fashion background seeing her daughter pick out such a stylized outfit relatively on her own. After breakfast Gwen had the kids stand in front of the front door with their backpacks and lunch boxes in tow. It might be cliche but Gwen could care less. Before they knew it, they were loading the car and making their way to the private school Gwen had begged Blake to let their kids go to, even though he didn't need much convincing. 

When they made it to school they walked Lena to her classroom first, introducing themselves to her teacher. 

"Mommy I want to go to my class now!" Jackson said pulling on Gwen's hand.

"Alright buddy let's go to your class now." 

As they make their way to Jackson's class Gwen notices him getting nervous. It's killing Gwen on the inside already, but she is trying really hard to not show how upset she is. By the time they make it to his room he has a death grip on both Gwen's hand and Blake's hand. Before they take him into his room they squat down to talk to him.

"Hey dude I thought you were excited?" Blake said 

"Daddy I changed my mind I want to stay at home with you and mommy."

"Baby as much as we want you at home with us, you have to go to school." Gwen said feeling like her heart was being ripped out of her chest.

His eyes started to fill up with tears, and Gwen is barely holding on to her tears. 

"Jackson it's okay dude. We are gonna walk in with you and then you're gonna play with new friends, eat lunch, learn some stuff, and before you know it we will be back to pick you up." Blake said knowing Gwen wouldn't be able to keep it together seeing his tears.

"Promise you will come back and get me?" Jackson asked 

"Absolutely baby! We would never leave you here! You're our baby remember?" 

He seemed slightly satisfied so Gwen and Blake took him into the room and introduced themselves to his teacher. Gwen noticed a tear or two fall down his cheeks as they said goodbye and left him for the day at school.   
............................................  
As the walk to the car Blake can tell Gwen is fighting so hard to keep it together. Just as their son had, Gwen had a death grip on his hand. When they made it to the car Blake turned and pulled Gwen into his arms. That's all it took for Gwen to completely fall apart. 

"Baby you have to see this as a good thing. He is growing up. Why are you so upset?"

"Blake he is it. Our baby. Our last baby." Gwen said the last part quietly 

"Gwen did you want more kids? We never really talked about it did we?" Blake asks suddenly worried about his wife. 

"I don't want to talk about it here. Can we go home first?" Gwen says not looking at him but at their hands intertwined.

"Yeah we can do that." 

Blake places a kiss on Gwen's lips that he hopes tells her everything he wants her to know. When they get in the car and are on their way home Blake reaches across the center console to take his wife's hand in his.  
.....................................................  
Once home they make coffee and head to their favorite lounge chair out back. Blake sits down first pulling Gwen into his lap. 

"Gwen we need to talk about this." He says as she leans in to kiss him.

"I know babe. We can talk now." 

"So? Do you want more kids?" 

"I don't really know to be honest. I always thought I would have three or four but that was before I was broken?" She says again looking at her lap.

Blake grabs her chin pulling it up to make her look him in the eye because he what he is about to say is highly important for her to understand. 

"You are not broken Gwen! You are the most whole, amazing, and strong woman I know."

"I love you Blake!" She says leaning in once again to plant a kiss on his lips.

"You still haven't answered the question though baby. Do you still want more? I'm okay with whatever decision you make. I would be thrilled to have another one, but at the same time I'm more than content with the two we have." 

"I don't think I really want to go back to that baby stage. I mean we have two amazing kids. We have a boy and a girl. It's hard seeing them growing up so fast but I know that means we are doing a good job. Jackson crying today killed me."

"I know but he will be ok. He makes friends fast and probably won't want to leave." 

They sit there content with the decision they made. They have a complete family.  
\----------------------------------------------------  
The first week of school flew by for the kids. Jackson was adjusting well. He was making friends and had a new story to tell every day he got home. When Blake was able to pick them up he would. That was an advantage to his job. He mainly performed on the weekends. Sure he had studio time and commitments for interviews, etc. during the week but he was a family man and his label was very flexible with that. There were a couple days that Gwen got stuck in meetings and although he loved being with his wife he reveled in the quality time he got with his kids on the way home from school. Today was different though. After dropping the kids off for school Blake was driving his wife to the doctor. It was time for another check-up. She had been doing well at her previous appointments; so well the doctor was optimistic that they could stop the 6th month check-ups and switch to annual check-ups.

Blake parked the truck (his gift to himself after signing a new contract with the label and becoming a headlining tour) and ran around to Gwen's side to help her out. He took her hand in his as they walked into the office. Blake paused for a moment, brought her hand to his lips and placed a kiss on her knuckles.

"Baby...I just want you to know that I am proud of how hard you have fought to stay with our family, with me. Something tells me when we leave here today it will be with the best news we have heard yet."

"Awww babe...you and our kids are all the reason I need to fight anything that tries to come in my way. No let's go inside and see if I have kicked cancer's ass completely."

They sit in the waiting room until her name is called... "Mrs. Shelton? Gwen?"

"That's me" she turns to her husband reaching her hand out to him "come with me babe?"

"Always baby!"

The doctor arrives and looks at the couple "good afternoon Gwen, Blake. How has everything been going? Feeling good?"

Blake squeezes his wife's hand encouraging her to not hold anything back. Gwen smiles at him and turns to the doctor "I feel great doc. No issues at all. I am just hoping you have good news for me."

"Well Gwen, you're in luck. I have looked over your most recent scans and everything looks perfect. Your scans for the last year have had no changes so I think it is safe to say that you only need to come in annually now."

Gwen has tears in her eyes because she knows that means that she has really done it. She beat cancer! She knows she still has to be monitored but her odds are extremely promising. Blake stands up as they get ready to leave and he shakes the doctor's hand bringing him in for a hug...

"Doc...I can't thank you enough for saving her. My life wouldn't be the same without her...so...just thank you. There is no way I can ever repay you."

"Mr. Shelton...it is my pleasure. I am just happy that all of the treatments worked. I wish you both the best and we will see you next year. Be blessed" the doctor says as he makes his way out the door.

Blake wants to celebrate so he stops off at Gwen's favorite sushi restaurant for an impromptu lunch date. Over their meal Gwen looks deep in thought.

"What's up baby? You look deep in thought."

"Blake would you mind if I offer to do Sunday dinner at our house this weekend since you don't have a show? Maybe we can have a little party with family and friends...celebrate the good news."

"Anything you want darlin'. I think it is a great idea. Let's do it. Why don't we sit down after we get the kids and make some calls to everyone we want to have come; maybe even some caterers so you don't have to worry about it?"

"Great idea babe. It is short notice so I will take all of the help I can get."  
\-----------------------------------------------  
Sunday rolled up faster than they expected. None of their guests knew exactly why they were having dinner at Blake and Gwen's this time but no one complained either. Weather was still nice so the kids got to swim and so did some of the adults. Luke and Caroline even made into town. Luke having a break from touring as well. Blake had helped him connect with some people in Nashville and they were both signed to Rare Records now. Luke even opened for Blake in the beginning of his career.

With all of the guests there and meals served Gwen decided it was time for their announcement.

"Babe...let's give them the good news!"

"Hey y'all" Blake hollered "Gwen and I have something we want to share with you!"

All of their guests looked at them with question, some with fear, others with anticipation in their eyes.

Gwen stepped next to Blake and made her announcement "so I had my most recent check-up with my doctor on Friday!"

Patti jumped up and yelled "no matter what is going on baby we are here for you" thinking Gwen was definitely go to say she had a relapse.

Blake gestured for Patti to come to him "mom...don't worry she didn't relapse" he whispered.

"Umm so...what I wanted everyone to know is that the doctor said my scans are all clear for the past year. I am officially declared cancer free and he even thinks things are promising enough to only have to see me once a year."

The entire backyard was hollering, cheering, ecstatic for Gwen. Congratulations could be heard all around. Gwen was so moved she was brought to tears. 

"Baby you okay?"

"I'm good babe...just overwhelmed with all of the support babe! I just can't believe I did it...I am still here!"

"Gwen, darlin' listen to me. You are amazing. You looked cancer square in the eyes so to speak and you made it your mission to beat it! I am so proud of you!" Blake says leaning down to place a soft kiss on her lips.

"I couldn't have done it without you Blakee! My doctor told me once in my appointment that I needed to fight harder. After you came into my life he told me that it was amazing what love could do. It was like my body started fighting harder after I met you! So thank you for standing by my side babe!"

"There is no place I would rather be!"

As the party wound down and the guests began to leave they all said their goodbyes to Blake first then Gwen. Everyone wanted to let her know how proud they were of her and how happy they were that she was healthy and happy. They all knew her back when and knew she deserved better. Now she has it. An amazingly talented and handsome husband and two beautiful children. Gwen thanked each guest as they made their way out and when she closed the door behind the last guest she couldn't help but think of what was left to come. Whatever it was she knew it would be amazing so long as she had Blake and her kids by her side.


	19. Always

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks so much for this journey. We decided to end a chapter early because we weren't sure where to go with it and didn't want to ruin it. So here you go the last chapter.

"Hey baby" Blake says walking up to her wrapping his arms around her waist 

"Blakee" she says turning to plant a kiss on his lips. "How was your meeting with Jake and Brandon?"

"Gwen they wanted to tell me about the CMA nominations before they come out to the public." 

"Does that mean something good or bad?" 

"Well they told me that I got nominated again."

"Really babe? What are you up for?" She asked excitement lacing her voice 

"I'm up for entertainer of the year." Blake told her still seeming shocked with the news himself

"Are you serious Blake?!" Gwen asked with a huge smile on her face 

"Yeah! I don't even know how to process it ya know. Like, what if I win?"

"You accept it and enjoy the recognition because you absolutely deserve it!" 

"I don't know how your going to feel about this, but babe I want us all there. The kids too." 

"Blake is that really a good idea? Intentionally exposing them to the media?"

"They are already exposed everyday when they leave the house." 

Gwen could see in his eyes how much this meant to him but she just didn't like the idea of giving the paparazzi permission to invade her kids lives. Despite having a father who is clearly one of the biggest names in country music and a mother who is soaring her way to one of the most prestigious jobs at Vx, she wanted her kids to grow up as normal as possible. 

"Blake I don't want them to go. Of course I'll come, but I'm just not comfortable with the kids going." 

"Is there room for discussion? Or is this a foot down decision?" 

"What is there to discuss? Either they go or they don't and I'm not comfortable with them going."

"Wow ok then Gwen." He turned to leave but stopped needing her to know how upset he is. 

"Just forget about it Gwen. I'll go by myself. No need for you to come, might as well keep the whole family's exposure to a minimum." He said. 

Gwen turned to see the tears in his eyes and the look of pure devastation on his face.   
"Blake wait!" Gwen yelled as he turned slamming the door on his way out.   
...........................................  
Gwen can hear his truck pulling out of the driveway like she was still in that moment. She was so upset that night and still is. When he had come home that night for dinner he acted completely normal with the kids but barely acknowledged Gwen at all. He packed his bags when the kids went to bed and left for a show but not before telling her he was just gonna go straight to Nashville from his show. She is just trying to protect her kids. Is it so wrong to want to protect them and to keep their lives as normal as possible? She finished putting her makeup on and went out back with the kids who were playing on the massive jungle gym Blake had just bought them. She really needed to talk through this with someone. Was she really being that unreasonable? The crushed look Blake had on his face that night was ingrained in her memory. Gwen pulled her phone out and dialed the one person she knew could help her understand where Blake was coming from. 

"Hello?" 

"Hi Dot it's Gwen."

"Gwen! How are you dear?"

"I need to talk to you. I need some insight again." 

"Of course dear what's going on?"

"So the CMAs are in two days and it's a big deal for Blake. He wants the kids to be there."

"And you don't want them to go, am I right?" Dot asks immediately knowing the mother's point of view. 

"I just feel like we are giving them permission to invade our kids lives by taking them." 

"Gwen dear I think the moment Blake decided to peruse his career and the moment you started pushing for senior designer at Vx, the chances of the kids having a "normal" life went out the window. I know having them in the media is scary. Hell I would be terrified just to let them leave the house. However, is the fear bigger than your family? Are you willing to let the media keep you from being a family? And most importantly are you willing to let that fear come between you and Blake?" 

"Thanks Dot I know what I need to do now." 

She thanked Dot telling her good bye. Blake would be in Nashville the next day, and Gwen knew exactly what she needs to do and that's what she was going to do.   
\------------------------------------------------  
Blake had landed in Nashville but he just wasn't himself and the driver from the label that picked him up could sense it. "Mr. Shelton are you alright? You are awful quiet today?"

"I'm good Brian...sorry...it's just been a long few weeks."

"Well hopefully you get some down time here. I heard you're up for the big one this year? We are all pulling for you Sir. Here's our stop. I hope everything starts looking up for you Mr. Shelton." Brian says as he helps Blake get his bags out of the car and hands them to the bell hop.

Blake is still upset that Gwen wouldn't budge on bringing the kids so when he gets settled he just sends her a quick text "hey I made it to Nash. Tell the kids I miss them and I love them."

When Gwen sees the message her heato rt breaks. She definitely did a number on him this time. Sometimes she feels like all she does is break his heart over and over again and he doesn't deserve that. Gwen replies "I am glad you're okay. I miss you and so do the kids. I love you Blake!" She presses the send button. She waits, anxious for a quick reply but it doesn't come. After an hour she gives up the wait. She decides that it is time to take action. She calls Jake at the record label.

"Jake hi...it's Gwen...Blake's wife" she says shyly

"Yes ma'am...how are you Gwen?"

"Ummm I am okay but I'm afraid I am calling for a favor."

"Okay shoot...what can I help you with?"

"Well you see Blake told me about the nomination and he really wanted the kids there but I was scared it would be too public for them. I am just trying to protect them but after a conversation with my very wise mother-in-law I know that all I can do is keep them close and teach them how to handle it all in the long run. So my favor is this. I want to know if it is possible to get a seat for me at the show, but where he won't notice me. I will have Dot with me to watch the kids backstage if possible. If he wins I want to surprise him and send the kids out on the stage with him. What do you think?"

"Wow...I have never had anyone ask that of me before. I know he mentioned y'all weren't coming but he didn't say why. I understand your apprehension but I promise you Gwen that the label and his manager will help do whatever they can to keep your children out of the public eye as much as possible. That being said; I think you have a deal. I can definitely get you a seat. We will seat you a few rows behind him so he won't see you. We'll keep Dot and the kids in a room backstage until the time the award is to be announced. At that time we will bring you backstage with them just in case. I can definitely make this happen. Now how are you getting here?"

"Well I was going to buy tickets right after we hung up Sir."

"Gwen..remember it's Jake. After all these years I think we can call each other by name. We are family here. Now...can you be at the private terminal at LAX tomorrow at 10 AM?"

"Yes of course."

"Okay be there and I will have a plane waiting. You can stop in Oklahoma City to pick up Miss Dot. I will have my secretary call and make her arrangements as well. We will see you here in time for the show."

"Thank you so much Jake. I owe you one."

"Gwen please...your husband has done so much for our label. It is the least I can do for him. I will see you tomorrow night."

After hanging up Gwen calls her mom and dad to let them know she and the kids will be going to Nashville so they don't worry if they don't hear from here over the weekend. She goes to her room and starts packing her stuff before going to get the kids bag situated. She sends a goodnight text to Blake and only gets a terse response of "Night Gwen". Tears form in her eyes but she knows she is on the path to fixing this.  
\----------------------------------------------------  
Blake wakes and gets ready to meet Jake for lunch before the awards. When he gets to the restaurant Jake greets him with a hug and a pat on the back. 

"Blake my man....how was the trip?"

Blake starts to sit as he responds "it was good Jake thanks. How is the family?"

"They are great. Thank you for asking. And yours?" Jake asks knowing the pain he will see in Blake's eyes.

"Ahh the kids are amazing. Growing up way too fast. Gwen is working hard at Vx and Chuck is talking about making her a partner. I think he is grooming her to take over. He is a good guy!"

"Hey that is great buddy. Glad to hear all is well."

The men eat their meal and towards the end Jake gets a phone call so he excuses himself "pardon me for a sec Blake; I need to take this."

Jake comes back after speaking with none other than Gwen. She let him know they would arrive shortly and she would meet him at the awards soon.

As they are paying for their meals Blake gets a message "I know you are upset babe and I am so sorry I am the one that made you feel that way; but I want you to know how proud of you the kids and I are. We miss you and we love you -G"

"Thank you" was the only response she got. They had just stopped in Oklahoma to pick up Dot and were getting ready to take off again when it came through. Dot could see the look on Gwen's face.

"Darlin' don't fret...we will be there soon and all will be okay."  
\-----------------------------------------------  
The time had come for Blake to attend one of the most prestigious awards shows in country music. He had attended shows like this before and even won some awards but this was for Entertainer of the Year. This felt like validation to him. For all the time he had to spend away from his family. His family that wouldn't even be here tonight. He put on a smile for the red carpet that to everyone seemed genuine but his wife and kids would know that wasn't his real smile. He was taken to his seat in the front row just in time for the opening of the show. He knew he should be ecstatic but without Gwen, Jackson, and Lena it just wasn't the same.

Unbeknownst to Blake Gwen was three rows back in a gorgeous red dress that matched the vest he was wearing. The kids were being ushered to the side of the stage as he sat their waiting for the final category of the night. Gwen discreetly made her way backstage as well during the commercial break they had to have. She held onto to her kids hands in anticipation. She had a good feeling about this.

Blake sat with his knee bouncing in anticipation. He was nervous, frustrated, sad, and excited all at once. He was deep in thought texting Gwen "baby I am sorry I stormed out..please forgive me?" when the next presenters came on stage. It was Trace Adkins and Toby Keith, the men whom had taken Blake under their wing when he first got signed.

Toby speaks first "Ladies and Gentlemen it is time for the big one....Entertainer of the Year!"

"That's right Toby...these nominees have been touring all around the country and world doing their thing for the fans night after night...they are some of the hardest working, nicest people in country music."

"Ain't that the truth Trace...let's take a look at the nominees: Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban, Rascal Flatts, Little Big Town, and Blake Shelton!"

Blake's leg is now bouncing a mile a minute. Gwen is on the side of the stage anxiously waiting the announcement "come on babe, come on babe".

"And the winner is...." Trace says as he opens the envelope

"Our little brother....BLAKE SHELTON!!!!!!" The men yell into the microphone.

Blake's head snaps up. He stands up to the applause and points to himself mouthing "ME?"

He makes his way up the stair and onstage. Toby and Trace embrace him as they congratulate him. They hand him the award and thanks them before turning to the mic.

He runs his hand through his hair "ummm...wow. I was not expecting the nomination to begin with but winning this award...oh my god y'all...I just don't know what to say!"

In the back of Blake's mind was the wish that his family could be here with him. Just as he started to speak Gwen told the kids to go to daddy.

"Lena take Jackson and go get Daddy. I am right behind you. It's okay go ahead."

"DADDDDYYYYY!" was all Blake heard. He turned to the sound of the voices as he heard the room full of "ooooo's and awwww's".

Jackson jumped into his arms as Lena clutched to his side. Gwen hung back a bit not wanting to interrupt the moment. He gestured for her to come to him and pulled her into his side while handing her the award.

"Wow y'all. This is absolutely amazing. I'm was at a bit of a loss tonight until now so if you will indulge me a moment to tell you a story. Almost 9 years ago I set out to L.A. to meet with a label and I walked into a hospital to sing for some patients battling cancer. It was there that I met my beautiful wife Gwen. She was fighting for her life while saving mine. She is cancer free now and even more beautiful and stronger than ever. We never thought we would have children y'all so I jumped into the music and was lucky enough to have a dear friend put me in contact with Jake at Rare Records; and he gave me a shot...thank you Jake and Chuck. On our honeymoon we had to go home to Tishomingo because a storm was heading toward my ranch and the morning after arriving we found a little girl lost, scared, and wet. That little girl is right here beside me....this is our daughter Lena! God knew we wanted to provide a home for a child and he brought her to us. I might not be overly religious but that's the only explanation I have for that. Down the road a bit we were blessed with our son Jackson thanks to modern medicine practices and two very loving and unselfish people...thank you so much Jen and Todd. I tell you this all because I want you to know that the road to this moment has not been easy and without obstacles but the fans are worth it and my family is worth it. I have been blessed to sing country music for a living. It takes me away from my family at times and that is the hardest part; but without the music, the label, the industry, and of course the fans; my family and I would not be where we are today. So thank you to the fans for your support; to Jake and everyone at my label, to my man Chuck and his wife Vivian...God Bless you Always; to my man Luke and his beautiful wife Caroline...thank you for being there for us and our kids; to Jen and Todd...man I can never thank you enough; to my mom and family...I love y'all...to Mom and Dad Stefani...thank you all for the most amazing woman ever...to my Jackson and Lena....you make Daddy so proud every day...I love you two so much...and to Gwen...without you Darlin'....none of this would have ever happened...I love you ALWAYS! Thank you all for this and God Bless!"

As Blake walked off the stage with his family by his side he reminisced a bit...daydreamed if you will. He and Gwen had been through so much together. They have had their share of highs and lows but they always came out on the other side stronger and more in love if that was even possible. He told himself that if he ever forgot that this was his soulmate by his side all he had to do was remember tonight. She would move mountains for him and he would do the same for her.

They have grown as a couple and grown as family since that fateful day years ago at the hospital. He took a chance on a dream. A dream to sing and a dream to finally find love. His dream came true as fate would have it. He and Gwen started out chasing family; they got married and started finding family; and in the end they and everyone around them were always family...AS FATE WOULD HAVE IT...ALWAYS!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Keep a lookout for our new fic coming


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